Pokemon: Chronicles of Sinnoh
by LightRealm
Summary: The third and final installment in the Davin series. Follow him as he goes through Sinnoh to reach the league and finally win this time! (Chapters 1-19 were originally written from 6/10/2011 to 1/15/2012) ON INDEFINITE HIATUS.
1. Chapter 1 - Bumping Into a New Start

"Hmm... there! I see it!" Davin pointed north. He, Zapter, and Hana stared in awe as the region of Sinnoh was coming into view. All three were excited to be going on a new adventure, where they were all prepared to work hard and aim for their goal at conquering the Sinnoh League. "I'll win for sure this time," Davin smiled as he clenched his fist. "I just know it!"

When the ferry had reached shore, everyone departed on to the dock. Davin checked his Sinnoh map on his Pokegear that Professor Cypress had installed before he left.

"So this is Sandgem Town," he confirmed while Hana was on his shoulder and Zapter floated near his left side. "And from what the professor told me, the first gym is in Oreburgh City. So, if we go through Route 202 and go right of Jubilife City, we'll be there in no time. Sound like a plan, guys?"

"Chikori!" Hana nodded.

"Magnemite!" Zapter smiled.

He recalled them to their Poke balls and stuffed them in his pocket as he walked further into this new town.

* * *

A few minutes later, Davin was outside of a huge building that he suspected was some kind of laboratory. "Wow... I wonder what kind of research they do there." he wondered.

He kept his eyes on the building as he walked a few more paces until he felt someone bump into him, resulting in both of them falling flat on their backs.

"Nngh..." Davin said as he rubbed his head. He slowly rose up to see a boy around his age with blonde hair, wearing a blue short-sleeved shirt, long light-black pants and brown shoes; Davin also noticed that he wore a light-green scarf around his neck and that his brown-colored satchel was over his right shoulder.

***A/N - He is basically Barry, the rival from the Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum games, except he wears a blue shirt instead of the collar shirt that's orange and white***

The boy rose up and pointed his finger at Davin. "Hey! Why don't you look where you're going?! Don't you know that serious accidents can happen when you do that?"

"What are you talking about?" Davin said as he stood up. "_You're_ the one who bumped into _me_!"

The boy also stood up. "Well, whatever. Just be careful next time, will ya?"

Davin shook his head. "Who are you, anyway?"

"Me? I'm Zale. My dream is to get all eight Sinnoh badges and enter the Pokemon league!"

"Really?! Cool! My name's Davin, and I've come from the Varex region to enter the Sinnoh League as well."

"Oh, _really_?" Zale said, sounding doubtful. He walked closer to Davin and started eyeing him all over, much to the latter's confusion and discomfort. Zale then backed away, closed his eyes, folded his arms, and, with a frown, said, "Nope. I don't see it."

"See what?" Davin asked, confused.

Zale opened his eyes. "Your quality. You don't seem like the kind of trainer who could successfully get all the badges." A smirk appeared on his lips. "Personally, I doubt you could even make it past the first gym."

"What?!" Davin shouted, his anger having been awoken.

"Heck, I doubt you could even beat _me_ in a battle." Zale added. "I've only been on my journey for a week and two days, but I'm so strong, I could probably get all eight badges within a day!"

"Well, actions speak louder than words, so let's see if you can back up what you say in a battle?" Davin challenged.

"Fine. But don't be surprised when I beat you." He grinned.

* * *

The boys distanced themselves from about 7 feet to give their Pokemon some room for battle.

"Let's make it 2-on-2." Davin said.

"Sure." Zale took out a Poke ball and threw it. "Shinx, let's go!" The ball opened and a lion cub with the colors blue, black, and yellow materialized into battle; it also had a yellow star at the end of its tail and the tuft of blue fur on its mane was noticeable as it stuck out a bit.

"What kind of Pokemon is that?" Davin asked as he took out his Pokedex.

"Shinx, the Flash Pokemon. The extension and contraction of Shinx's muscles generates electricity. Its body glows if it is in danger."

Davin enlarged one of his Poke balls. "Alright, Hana, you're up!" He threw the Poke ball and the baby Chikorita was released. "Are you ready for your first battle, Hana?"

"Chika!" She firmed her stance with readiness in her eyes.

Zale blinked. "First battle?"

"Yep." Davin nodded. "You see, this Chikorita just hatched yesterday, so it hasn't had an official battle until now."

Zale smirked. "Well, it's a shame that its first battle is going to end in defeat! Shinx, use Spark!" Its body became surrounded by blue electricity as it ran towards its foe.

"We'll see about that! Hana, use Petal Dance!" With a toss of her head, she released a spiraling wind of pink petals from her head-leaf. Shinx charged through, despite the petals making contact, and tackled Hana with its electricity filled body. "Oh no!"

Zale chuckled. "I guess since Chikorita just hatched, its Petal Dance doesn't compare to a _real_ one."

Davin scowled. "Then how about _this_? Leaf Storm!" Hana's leaf glowed as multiple glowing leaves gathered around her body; she then sent them over to Shinx.

"Dodge it!" Shinx quickly jumped out of the way before it could be hit. "Now, Tackle!"

"Double Team!" As soon as Shinx was in range, Chikorita's body momentarily glowed white and she multiplied.

"Shinx, blast them all away with your Charge Beam!" Yellow sparks surrounded its body and fired a beam of electricity at every single one until it hit the actual Hana.

"You okay?" Davin asked. Hana shook the electric sparks off and stood firm. "Alright! Let's use Solar Beam!" She lifted her leaf into the air as it glowed and began to absorb the sun's rays.

"Now's our chance, Shinx! Use Bite!" The electric Pokemon jumped and propelled its body towards Hana to successfully bite her head.

"Hang in there, Hana! Concentrate on your move and try to bear the pain!"

"Bite harder, Shinx! Don't let up one bit!" The Flash Pokemon dug its fangs deeper into the Chikotita's skin as Hana gritted her teeth, trying to obey her trainer's command. Soon, the sunlight was gathered into Hana's leaf.

"Now, Hana! Throw Shinx off and use Solar Beam!" With all her might, Hana managed to toss Shinx towards the sky with a violent swing of her head and she fired the Solar Beam at Shinx while it was in midair.

"No! Shinx!" Zale cried. Shinx landed on the ground with a thud and had fainted.

"Awesome! Way to go, Hana!" Davin cheered.

"Chika, Chika!" She happily jumped.

With grimace, Zale recalled Shinx. "No matter. I've still got this one! I choose you!" He threw a different Poke ball and a green turtle with a brown shell, a yellow jawbone, and a seedling on top of its head came out. Naturally, Davin looked it up on his Pokedex.

"Turtwig, the Tiny Leaf Pokemon. The shell on its back is made of soil, and it will only feel moist on a Turtwig who is healthy."

"Return, Hana!" Davin held her Poke ball and its red light enveloped her, bringing her back inside of it. "Now, Zapter, it's your turn!" He tossed a new Poke ball to reveal his Magnemite. "Just to let you know, Zale, unlike Hana, Zapter _wasn't_ hatched and it's a very tough opponent."

"Ha! That doesn't scare me one bit. Turtwig, show 'em how tough you are with Razor Leaf!" The leaves on its head glowed as it swung its head to release the razor-sharp leaves. Unfortunately, when they hit Zapter, it showed no signs of pain. "Huh?!"

Davin chuckled. "You'll have to do better than that. My Magnemite's steel body renders lightweight attacks like Razor Leaf useless."

Zale growled. "Fine, then! Turtwig, use Tackle!" It charged at Zapter and rammed its body, but it backfired and Turtwig skidded across the field due to Zapter's steel body being strong. "You've gotta be kidding me!"

"Now, Zapter, use Mirror Shot!" Its eye flashed white and it fired a green-colored beam from it that struck Turtwig when it tried to stand up. "How you like _that_?"

Zale grunted. "Use Withdraw!" Turtwig tucked its legs in and lied down its head as its body flashed red, indicating that its defense was increasing.

"That won't stop us! Thunderbolt!" Electricity charged in Zapter's magnets and it fired a beam of electricity, shocking Turtwig as it was hit.

"Hang in there and use Tackle!" When Turtwig tried to move, yellow sparks appeared on its body that made it stop. "It's paralyzed?!"

Davin smirked. "Turtwig's not going to last, Zapter, so let's end this with Electro Ball!"

"Magne..." Zapter put its magnets together and a yellow sphere of electricity formed between them. "Mite!" It then threw the sphere at Turtwig and it exploded on contact with the Tiny Leaf Pokemon.

"Turtwig!" Zale shouted. When the smoke cleared, it was lying flat on the ground, unconscious.

"We win!" Davin announced proudly. "Good job, Zapter."

"Magne, Magnmite!" It went up and down in the air excitedly.

Zale grunted as he recalled Turtwig. "Okay, I admit you've got _some_ quality as a trainer, but that's all I'm going to give you for now." He picked up his satchel. "I may have lost, but next time we meet, I'll beat you for sure! Count on it!"

"Heh! I look forward to it!" Davin grinned. Zale turned and walked away with bitterness from his lost.

"Well, that was quite a battle you had there." A sudden gruff voice said. Davin was a bit surprised at it and he turned to his right to see a man with white hair, a moustache of the same color, wearing a blue vest and black pants.

"Uh... thanks." the boy said. "Who are you?"

"I am Professor Rowan," he introduced. "And you must be Davin, am I correct?"

Davin gasped and blinked at once. "How do you know my name?"

"Professor Cypress contacted me and said that a young boy with a Chikorita and Magnmite would be coming to Sandgem Town to start a new journey. She asked me to provide you with Poke balls, seeing as you don't have any." The Professor turned his back and walked a few steps forward to the building before he turned his head back to Davin. "Are you coming?"

"Uh... Yes." He nodded, feeling a little unease from the man. Davin recalled his Magnemite and followed Professor Rowan to his lab.


	2. Chapter 2 - A Starly Shines Bright

When they went inside, Davin gazed at the technical machines there were in the lab. He also noticed that there were a few mini-couches, which he presumed were for if company came over, and a bookshelf for references. Professor Rowan guided him over to the very back of the lab and he waited until the professor handed him a gray box.

"Here are your Poke balls." Rowan said as Davin took the box. "Now, let me ask you a question: Exactly how much experience do you have as a Pokemon trainer?"

Davin thought for a moment. "A lot, I guess. I made it to the top 4 when I competed in the Varex League and I recently just made it to the top 3 in the Hoenn League Ever Grande Conference."

The Prof. nodded. "I see. And do you truly care for Pokemon as well?"

"Yes, sir, with all my heart!" Davin answered truthfully.

"Hmm..." Rowan pondered as he stared and stroked his chin. "May I take a look at your Pokemon?"

"Sure." Davin brought out Hana and Zapter from their Poke balls.

The Professor went closer to Zapter and started to examine it; Davin wasn't sure what exactly he was looking for, though. He then knelt down to Hana and did the same thing, making the Chikorita a bit fearful of him. With his analysis complete, he stood tall and said, "I can see you've taken care of your Magnemite really well," He turned his gaze to Hana, who flinched and went behind Davin's legs. "But I'm not quite sure about your Chikorita."

"There's a reason for that, Professor. Chikorita just hatched from its egg yesterday and it gets very scared and timid when it meets strangers." Davin tensed when he thought about his words. "No offense, by the way."

"It's alright." he said. "Perhaps Chikorita will start to grow out of that when you journey further in Sinnoh."

"I thought the same thing. And I'll try my hardest to make sure of that while also focusing on getting to the Sinnoh League."

"Very good." Rowan nodded. "Best of luck to you in achieving your goal."

"Thank you." Davin said. He recalled his Pokemon, waved goodbye to Professor Rowan, exited the laboratory, and headed west to start his quest for the Sinnoh badges.

* * *

Route 202 was a grassy area with many trees on the side of the pathway. Davin walked along the said path as he thought about some things.

"_I'm so excited! My Sinnoh journey is finally beginning. After years of reading about it in books and looking at it on maps, I'm experiencing it for real!_" He held his chin. "_On another note, I wonder what the Oreburgh gym will be like. I don't know what kind of Pokemon he'll use, but I'm sure I'll be able to win. That's my goal, after all!_"

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a rustle in the trees. "What was that?" He looked up and saw something fly out of it: A small brownish-gray bird with an orange beak and talons of the same color.

"Hey! That's a Starly!" Davin recognized with a smile as he took out his Pokedex.

"Starly, the Starling Pokemon. Starly form groups because they're weak as individuals, but will argue if the group gets too big."

"Starly..." Davin had a flashback of when he was on his journey in Varex and a group of Starly and Staravia attacked him because he was in their territory. He then thought about the group's leader, Staraptor, who gave his Kakuna a hard time until it evolved and defeated it. "Despite it losing, that Staraptor was really strong. Imagine what I could do if I raised that Starly into one and used it in the Sinnoh League!"

Davin threw a Poke ball and his Chikorita materialized. "Hana, use Leaf Storm on that Starly!" He pointed to it. Hana summoned an amount of leaves and sent them to the bird, which fell to the ground when it was hit. "Nice one!"

Starly got back up and saw the source of the ambush, making it flap its wings to create a strong gust to make Hana flinch.

"That's Whirlwind." Davin noted. "Hana, Petal Dance!" Through the gust, Hana managed to send the spiral petals Starly's way and they struck, causing Starly to cancel Whirlwind.

"Petal Dance, one more time!" Before Hana could do it, Starly rushed in and smacked the Chikorita with its glowing wing. It then did a U-turn and struck her again with its body having a white streak of light following behind it.

"Are you alright?" Davin asked. Hana stood strong as if it hadn't been hit at all. "That Starly's a fast one. Hana, return!" The Chikorita looked a bit disappointed as the red light absorbed it. "Zapter, come out and use Gyro Ball!" The Magnemite appeared and immediately began spinning as two light blue orbs formed on its magnets.

Starly decided to take it head on with Quick Attack, which was a bad idea as Zapter overpowered it and knocked it to the ground.

"Yes! Go, Poke ball!" Davin threw an empty Poke ball at it and it absorbed the Starling Pokemon. It began to shake as the ball's button flashed red repeatedly. After three beeps, the flash disappeared into white sparks as the Poke ball remained still.

"All right!" Davin cheered as he took the Poke ball in his hand and raised it into the air. "I caught a Starly!"

"Mag! Magnemite!" Zapter celebrated with him.

"Starly, come on out!" Davin opened the ball as Starly appeared and hovered in front of him. "Welcome to the group, Starly! Glad to have you!"

"Star, Starly!" It grinned. Davin held out his arm and Starly perched on it.

"Nicknames are a necessity on our team, Starly. So, how do you feel about being called Tempest?"

"Star?" Starly thought about it for a moment until it nodded. "Starly Starly!"

"Cool." He turned Tempest towards his Magnemite. "Zapter, say hi."

"Magne, Magnmite!" It said happily.

"Star, Starly Star!" It smiled at it.

"Good to see you guys getting along." Davin grinned. He returned the Pokemon to their respective Poke balls and continued following the route that would lead him to Jubilife City.


	3. Chapter 3 - Seaking For a Challenge

"Alright, guys, you ready?" Davin asked. His Pokemon nodded in unison. "Then let's get started!"

Davin was on Route 203. He had went to Jubilife City and healed his Pokemon, but decided to leave after that because Jubilife didn't have anything that interested him and he wanted to get to Oreburgh as soon as he could. Currently, he was training his three Pokemon for the upcoming gym battle by making them practice their moves on flying discs he purchased at the Jubilife Poke Mart before he left there.

Throwing a disc in the air, Davin shouted, "Zapter, use Mirror Shot!" and the Magnemite fired a green blast of energy from its eye, knocking the disc out of the air and into the bark of a tree.

"Your turn, Tempest! Wing Attack!" The disc was tossed and the Starly flew at it with its wings glowing and struck it with them to make it land on the ground.

"Go, Hana! Use Leaf Storm!" The leaf on her head glowed as leaves gathered around her and were fired at the thrown disc, which hit it so hard that it flew into the pond that was near them.

"Pretty good." Davin said as he retrieved Hana's disc from the water. "Let's keep going so that we'll be ready for when we get to Oreburgh, okay?" His Pokemon agreed, but they heard something bubbling in the pond. "What could that be?" As the bubbling continued, something big came out to the surface: An orange fish with a horn and white fins that had black markings.

Davin's Pokedex

"Seaking, the Goldfish Pokemon, and the evolved form of Goldeen. Seaking protects its family from harm by fighting with its drill-sharp horn. It mostly lives in hollowed rocks in streams."

"So what's it doing on the surface?" Davin wondered. An orange ball suddenly appeared on Seaking's horn and a beam was fired from it, causing everyone to jump out of the way as it exploded when it hit the grass.

"I guess maybe it's angry that we disturbed it with our training." Davin thought. An orb of water formed in front of Seaking's mouth and it was launched. "Thunderbolt!" Zapter responded with a blast of electricity that destroyed the oncoming Water Pulse.

"Sea! Seaking!" It shouted with its eyes narrowed.

"Looks like we'll have to fight it. Even so, it'll be great training for our gym battle." Davin pointed to the large fish. "Hana, use Petal Dance!" The Chikorita fired an array of petals only to have Seaking hop into the air to dodge it and fire an Ice Beam to freeze Hana solid, forcing Davin to recall her into the Poke ball.

"Alright, Tempest, use Quick Attack!" It flew at Seaking and made a direct hit, but the Goldfish Pokemon quickly retaliated by using Hyper Beam to knock it to the ground. The Starly was motionless as its trainer called it back. "Man, this is one tough Seaking." Davin turned to Zapter. "You ready?"

"Magnemite!" It nodded.

"Ok! Electro Ball!" Zapter hurled a sphere of electricity at Seaking, which exploded when it made contact. "Now, Thunderbolt!" Its magnets charged with electric sparks and the electric blast hit Seaking as it cried out in pain.

"Gyro Ball!" When Zapter came at it with its move, Seaking released a beam of transparent sound waves from its mouth that made Zapter stop and slightly sway in the air with a swirl in its eye. "Supersonic... Now Zapter's confused."

"Sea-king!" It released another Water Pulse and sent Zapter into the grass.

"Zapter, hang in there!" It came back into the air, still confused. "Mirror Shot!" It fired the green beam, but it was aimed at the left side of Seaking. The water Pokemon then used Hyper Beam to cause even more damage to the Magnet Pokemon.

Davin started to panic. "_If this keeps up, Zapter's going to be defeated soon, and there's no way it's going to snap out of it in time. There's gotta be a way I can prevent that, but how?_" As he thought, Seaking was preparing to use an Ice Beam. "It's a bit of a risk, but I'll try it. Zapter, Gyro Ball!" It started to spin with the blue orbs on its magnets at the same time the Ice Beam was fired. Zapter tried to push against it and succeeded in doing so, landing a hit on Seaking in the process.

"Magne?" The swirl in Zapter's eye disappeared.

"Great! Use Thunderbolt!" Once again, Seaking was electrocuted, the only difference being that electric sparks appeared around its body as it flinched. "It's paralyzed; now's our chance to beat it. Electro Ball!" The electric orb was tossed at the goldfish and it finally lost consciousness.

"Yes! Good job, Zapter!" The boy congratulated.

"Mite, Magnemite!" It thanked.

"Sea..." Seaking awoke and quickly submerged back into the water.

Despite them winning, Davin frowned as he returned his Magnemite. "It's a good thing we had that battle or else I never would've seen the difference in power. Zapter can handle itself because it was with me on my journey to Varex, but Hana and Tempest weren't able to hold on long enough to keep fighting since I both obtained them not too long ago." He sighed. "Oh, well. I guess after the first gym, we'll just have to keep on working."

Davin went back to Jubilife City's Pokemon Center to restore his Pokemon's health and went back to Route 203 to get to the Oreburgh Gate and challenge the gym leader.


	4. Chapter 4 - Vs Roark

After passing through the city's gate, Davin had arrived in Oreburgh City. It wasn't like most cities he had seen, as it was pretty rural with not much activity, its lack of plant life, and its ground not modernized with streets or sidewalks.

"Cool. Now to go and win my first Sinnoh badge!" As soon as he walked two steps, he was tackled by someone who was coming from the left side of the path. "Uggh... What the-?" Davin turned his head to see who was on top of him and saw it was a blonde guy wearing a blue shirt. "Zale?"

The boy groaned and looked at who was underneath him. "Davin? What are you doing here?" Zale got off him and they both stood up to face one another.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm here to challenge the gym."

Zale laughed. "Well, that just proves you're too slow." He went inside his pocket and got out a small symbol that resembled a combination of a Poke ball and a boulder. "I already challenged the gym leader and won the gym badge."

"What?! No way!" Davin couldn't believe that he was already behind.

Zale placed the badge back in his pocket and ran past him. "Well, gotta go! I'm off to win my second badge!"

Davin tightened his fist. "How could I let this happen? I won't lose to him; I'll catch up with him in no time!"

* * *

After going to the Pokemon Center to ask Nurse Joy for directions, Davin went to the gym and walked through the automatic doors. He wasn't surprised to see a battlefield made of rocks and boulders in the middle of it. Davin looked across the field and saw a guy with glasses wearing a red hard hat on top of his cordovan-colored hair; he also wore a gray sleeved vest over a black undershirt with gray pants while wearing black boots as well.

"So, I take it you're Davin?" The guy asked. "I'm Roark, the Oreburgh City gym leader."

Davin was surprised. "H-How'd you know my name?"

"Your friend, Zale, told me that you might be my next challenger, but he also said that you wouldn't be able to defeat me at the level you are now."

"_Curse you, Zale!_" Davin said mentally. "Well, don't believe him! I know that I'll be able to win against you, no doubt!"

Roark grinned. "Just what I like: A challenger with spirit!" He motioned for the referee to come to the side of the battlefield and judge the match.

"The battle between the gym leader, Roark, and the challenger, Davin, will now begin!" The ref. stated. "This will be a 3-on-3 battle. The match is over when all Pokemon on either side is unable to battle. Also, only the challenger may substitute his Pokemon." He crossed his flags. "Let the battle begin!"

"Okay, Geodude, let's go!" Roark threw a Poke ball to release the Rock Pokemon on to the field.

"Hana, I choose you!" The Leaf Pokemon materialized on the battlefield.

"Geodude, use Rollout!" It curled into a ball and began rolling towards its opponent.

"Use Double Team!" Hana's body flashed white and illusionary copies of herself surrounded Geodude when it stopped to figure out which one to hit. "Petal Dance!" The fakes disappeared to reveal that she was behind it and Geodude was struck by spiraling pink petals.

"Use Rollout again!" Geodude quickly recovered and rammed the Chikorita into a boulder. "Now, Rock Throw!" It slammed its fist into the ground to send rocks to hit Hana.

"Are you ok?" Davin asked. She stood up and nodded her head. "Leaf Storm!"

"Dodge and use Rollout!" Geodude rose into the air before the leaves could hit it and it rolled to send Hana into another boulder.

Davin grunted. "Hana, use Solar Beam!" She stood up again and started to charge power into her leaf.

"Keep using Rollout, Geodude!" The Rock Pokemon did as told and repeatedly struck her over and over again as she tried to hang on and gather energy.

"_Come on, Hana! Just a little bit more._" Davin cheered mentally. Geodude made its fourth hit when the Chikorita's leaf stopped glowing. As it came for its fifth, Davin yelled, "Solar Beam, Hana! Now!" and she quickly fired a white beam of light at Geodude, knocking it into a boulder, which broke upon impact, and making the Pokemon lose consciousness.

"Geodude is unable to battle! Chikorita wins!"

"Yes! I knew you could do it, Hana!" said Davin.

"Chiko, Chiko!" She cheered.

Roark recalled Geodude. "Not bad. But that was only my first Pokemon." He threw a new Poke ball. "Go, Onix!" The large Rock Snake Pokemon materialized on to the field and gave out a loud roar, which made Hana run to Davin, go behind his legs, and cower in fear.

"It's alright, Hana." Davin cooed as he picked her up. "You don't want to battle that big scary Onix, do you?"

"Chikori." It shook its head no.

"Just get some rest then." He called her back to her Poke ball and retrieved a different one from his right pocket. "Let's go, Zapter!" The Electric/Steel type levitated into battle.

"Onix, use Double Edge!" Its body glowed gold and Onix rushed forward to strike, but even though Zapter was forcibly pushed back by the move, it seemed like it had no effect.

"Zapter, use Gyro Ball!"

"Rock Throw!" As the Magnemite began to spin, Onix slammed its tail into the ground and rocks came up, individually hitting Zapter as it span, but that wasn't enough to stop it from getting a direct hit on Onix.

"Use Mirror Shot!" Zapter fired the green beam from its eye, striking Onix and making it fall to the ground with a thud.

"Come on, Onix! Get up!" Roark encouraged. The Rock Snake Pokemon attempted to, but suddenly collapsed back to the ground, unconscious.

"Onix is unable to battle! Magnemite wins!"

Roark called back Onix and took out his last Poke ball. "You're pretty good, Davin. I see you've raised your Magnemite really well."

"Thanks. Zapter's been with me for a while and has trained hard before I came to Sinnoh, so I doubt your last Pokemon can beat it, no matter how strong it is!"

"Well then, let's see! Cranidos, let's go!" The Poke ball let out a gray and blue dinosaur Pokemon with a blue dome-shaped head that had four spikes on the back of it.

"I've never seen a Pokemon like _that_." Davin commented as he pulled out the Pokedex.

"Cranidos, the Head Butt Pokemon. It lived in jungles around 100 million years ago, and its skull is as hard as iron."

"100 million years ago?! Then how come you have one?"

"I resurrected Cranidos from a fossil I found." Roark explained. "I find it amazing how Pokemon from long ago leave remains of themselves here in the present. And now you'll see the true power of a fossilized Pokemon!"

"Bring it! Zapter, Electro Ball!" It created the sphere between its magnets and flung it to the dinosaur.

"Cranidos, charge in with Headbutt!" It lowered its head and ran, breaking through Electro Ball and slamming into Zapter.

Something suddenly occurred to Davin. "Return, Zapter!" Once it was back inside, he quickly threw another one. "Let's go, Tempest!" The Starly came out to the field in mid-air.

"What? You switched out your Magnemite for a Flying type?" The gym leader was a bit confused. "Why?"

"I know that my Starly is at a disadvantage, but I want to see how good it is against types that are super effective against it." Davin explained. "The reason why is because I want it to get stronger and develop its skills so that it can win in future battles."

Roark grinned. "Alright, then. Cranidos, use Head Smash!" A light-blue aura cloaked Cranidos' body and it shot itself towards Tempest with its head pointed at it.

"Tempest, go in with Aerial Ace!" It spread its wings out and flew towards it with streaks of light engulfing its body. When the two interacted, an explosion was created and Tempest flew out of the smoke and into the ceiling; it then fainted when it hit the ground.

"Starly is unable to battle! Cranidos wins!"

As Davin recalled Tempest in shock, Roark said, "I guess your Starly could use a bit more work before it can take on opponents like Cranidos."

Davin sent Hana out next. "Since Head Smash causes recoil damage to the user, we can finish this up quick! Hana, use Leaf Storm!"

"Dodge, Cranidos, and use Pursuit!" It jumped out of the way of the Leaf Storm and ran at Hana with a dark aura outlining its body.

"Petal Dance!" Cranidos kept going, ignoring the petals, and it hit the Chikorita.

"Headbutt, let's go!"

"Double Team!"

Cranidos stopped in mid-attack when it saw Hana split into clones. With an order from Davin, the six copies that were created began to charge energy for Solar Beam. Both Crandios and Roark were flustered; they couldn't tell which one was real, nor could they figure out which one to hit.

"Use Head Smash on the one next to the middle!" It followed and threw itself at it, but ended up hitting a boulder because it was a fake. "Go back around and attack the one on the far left!" Cranidos shook itself and made its way to the designated Chikorita, resulting in it hitting another boulder. "Ugh!"

The four remaining clones were done absorbing power. Davin called out, "Solar Beam! Go!" and three of the fakes disappeared to reveal that the real Hana was beside the clone Cranidos had attacked last. She fired the beam of light as it pushed Cranidos into a boulder when it was trying to guard against the attack with its head and, surprisingly, the Head Butt Pokemon still stood. "No way!"

"I told you my Cranidos was strong. Use Head Smash!" It charged into Hana and the Grass Pokemon fell to its power.

"Chikorita is unable to battle! Cranidos wins!"

Davin called back Hana, telling her she did a good job, and sent his Magnemite back out. "We're almost there, Zapter, so let's use Mirror Shot!" Cranidos was able to block by using its cranium to deflect the beam, making a grunt of frustration come from the challenger.

"Cranidos, Leer!" It gave an intimidating glare to Zapter, lowering its defense. "Head Smash!" Cranidos tackled Zapter with its head, the latter surviving the hit, unlike its comrades.

Davin noticed that Cranidos was panting and could barely continue to stand. "Zapter still has some energy left, so the next move should decide it! Gyro Ball!" The blue orbs formed on its magnets as it spun toward its foe.

"Dodge it, Cranidos!" It tried to move, but it fell down in the process, causing Roark to gasp. Davin's Magnemite triumphantly landed its mark on the dinosaur, who skidded across the field and fell into unconsciousness.

"Cranidos is unable to battle! Magnemite wins! The victor of this battle is the challenger, Davin!"

"All right!" Davin jumped with his fist in the air. "Awesome, Zapter! You were great!"

"Magnemite, Mag!" It turned to him and grinned.

Roark came to Cranidos and knelt down beside it as he held it up. "You were excellent, Cranidos. Nice job."

"Crani..." It groaned in pain.

* * *

A while later, Davin and Roark stood outside the gym, with Hana, Tempest, and Zapter at Davin's side.

"That was a great battle, Davin." Roark said. He extended his hand, which held the same badge that Zale had gotten. "Here's proof of your victory at the Oreburgh gym: The Coal Badge!"

"Thank you, Roark!" Davin happily took the badge and raised it into the air. "My first Sinnoh gym badge! The Coal badge is mine!"

"Chika!/Starly!/Magnemite!" His Pokemon cheered with him.

"Also, Davin, I want you to have this." Roark handed him a gray stone-like object that had what appeared to be some type of shell.

Davin curiously took it in his hands. "What is it?"

"It's a Dome Fossil. I found it while I was digging at the Oreburgh Mine the other day."

"And you're just giving it to me?"

"Well, I found two fossils on that day, and since I didn't have any particular use for them, I decided to give them to the gym challengers who I found worthy enough to receive one."

Davin smiled at this, but it quickly went away when he said, "Wait. Who got the other fossil, then?"

"I gave it to Zale. Though he's a bit hyperactive, I found him to be an acceptable trainer and decided to entrust him with it."

"I see..." Davin wasn't exactly thrilled to hear that piece of info.

Roark pointed to a building that was just behind the Pokemon Center. "Over there is the Oreburgh Mining Museum. You can go there to revive your fossil back into a Pokemon."

"Okay, I will. Thanks again, Roark." Davin returned his three Pokemon and dashed to the Pokemon Center to heal them before going to the museum.


	5. Chapter 5 - Meeting The Shellfish

"So that machine will revive the fossil into a Pokemon?" Davin asked the researcher in the museum as he looked at a tall, blue cylinder-shaped machine.

"Yes," the researcher confirmed. "This machine has worked successfully on many different types of fossils, so it's guaranteed that yours will come out fine." He stuck out his hands. "The fossil, please."

Davin complied and gave him the ancient object. The researcher pressed a button and the doors to the machine opened; he placed the fossil in the center of the interior and the doors closed once more. He went to the left side of the machine and began typing something on the mini-computer that was installed, making the machine make some sort of humming noise as the process was beginning.

"Now, we just wait." The humming continued for awhile until the red light on the machine turned green and the doors opened, letting out white steam. When it cleared, a creature with a brown shell covering the entirety of its back, yellow claws, and red eyes was revealed to them.

"There you have it! Kabuto has been restored!" the researcher stated. In awe, Davin looked up this new Pokemon.

"Kabuto, the Shellfish Pokemon. Kabuto was believed to have inhabited beaches 300 million years ago. Its stiff hard shell protects it from enemies."

"Awesome! A Pokemon from the ancient times... this is just too great!" Kabuto jumped down from the machine and looked at Davin as he knelt down to it. "Hi there, Kabuto. My name is Davin and it's really nice to meet you."

"Kabu!" Kabuto latched on to Davin's face and started scratching him.

"OW! Hey, that hurts! Stop it!" He yelled as he tried to pry it off of him.

"It's not surprising that it would do that." said the researcher. "Since Kabuto isn't quite used to this world yet, you may find it a bit difficult to control."

"Gah!" Davin finally pulled Kabuto from his face, where multiple scratch marks were seen. "I'll keep that in mind..."

* * *

Before leaving for the next gym, Davin decided to head north to Route 207 to try and get Kabuto to be more comfortable with him and its surroundings. On the way there, Kabuto continued to cling to his face and claw him, frustrating Davin to have to suffer through this and keep prying the Pokemon off.

"I wish you'd just calm down. I'm not going to hurt you." he said as he kneeled down to place Kabuto on the grass part of the earthy route. "Don't you understand that?"

"Kabu! Kabuto!" It angrily said as it rubbed its claws together.

Davin sighed. "Maybe you'll feel better if I introduce you to the others." Still kneeling, he threw his Poke balls into the air to let out his Pokemon. "Everyone, I want you to meet Kabuto." He gestured to the shelled Pokemon. "He's the Pokemon that was revived from the fossil Roark gave me. He's not used to being in our time period, so try to make him feel at ease, 'kay?"

Zapter was the first to approach him. "Magnemite! Magne, Magnemite!" It greeted.

"Kabu!" Like with Davin, Kabuto attached itself to Zapter and scratched, only it had no effect since the Magnemite's body was steel. Zapter shook him off and tried to tell him not to be so fearful of it and the others, but to no avail as he eyed Tempest and flung himself at it.

"Starly!" Without thinking, Tempest used his Whirlwind to blow Kabuto into a nearby rock.

"Kabuto!" He got back up and started rubbing his claws again in an angry manner. Hana was scared by this and she went to Davin and buried her face into his chest.

"Don't be scared, Hana. It may not act like it, but Kabuto is scared too; he just doesn't know how to cope with his environment, that's all." Davin comforted.

"Chiko." Hana looked up at him, not quite convinced.

"Hmm..." The trainer looked at the irritated shellfish for a few seconds, placed Hana on the ground, stood up, and turned to it. "Kabuto, do you know what a Pokemon battle is?" It looked at him and gave a confused yet angry look. "It's where Pokemon fight each other until one of them gets defeated, kind of like what you did when you were back home. Wanna try it out?"

He nodded. "Kabu-to!"

Davin looked at his Chikorita. "Hana, I want you to be Kabuto's opponent."

"Chika, Chiko!" She rapidly shook her head in refusal.

"Come on, Hana. I want Kabuto to have an enjoyable battle, but that can't happen if I use Zapter, with it being too strong, or Tempest, with him having a type disadvantage. Besides, it'll be good experience for you. Please, for me?"

"Chiko..." She thought for a minute. She didn't want to fight Kabuto because it was too violent, but she didn't want to disappoint Davin and make him sad. Reluctantly, she nodded, "Chiko."

"Thank you." He smiled, which made Hana feel better about making the decision.

* * *

After Davin recalled Tempest and Zapter, he sat down on the grass as Hana and Kabuto faced each other on the bare ground part of the area. "Remember to give it your all, you two; no holding back!" Kabuto scoffed while Hana nodded. "All right! Start off with Leaf Storm!"

Chikorita sent the leaves toward the Shellfish Pokemon. Kabuto jumped in the air to dodge and released a sharp and piercing noise from its shell that made Hana flinch from it.

"So... that move is Metal Sound," Davin confirmed as he looked at his Pokedex. "Aside from that and Scratch, it also knows Brine and Ancient Power. That's pretty good."

Kabuto showed Brine in action by letting out a blast of saltwater at Hana, who evaded. Davin called for Petal Dance and the Rock/Water type suffered the damage from it, reacting by using Ancient Power and throwing a silver ball to hit Hana.

"You're doing great, Hana! Now, use Solar Beam!" As she began to absorb energy, Kabuto used Metal Sound to try and stop her, but she did her best to hold on as she gritted her teeth at the noise. The shellfish then used Brine and at that moment, Solar Beam was ready and Hana fired it without hesitation; Brine didn't stand a chance against the Grass type move and Kabuto was hit.

Unfortunately, it was hit too hard and it flew through the air into the distance.

"Kabuto!" Davin shrieked. "Oh no! Quick, Hana, let's go get it!"

"Chiko!" She followed behind him as he ran north in a panic.


	6. Chapter 6 - Kabuto Rescue Operation

When Davin ran a few steps, he noticed a sign that read, 'Route 206' and quickly ran further with Chikorita at his legs. As they ran across a bridge leading to the other side, they noticed that a lot of rocks were on this route as well as grass.

"Oh man!" Davin panted when he stopped near a tree. "Where could Kabuto me? He couldn't have landed too far..."

"Chikori!" Hana faced north towards the center of the route and Davin gasped at what he saw: Kabuto was in fighting position as it was surrounded by about 18 purple winged-scorpions that were about to attack.

"There he is!" Davin said as he took out the Pokedex. "But those other Pokemon..."

"Gligar, the FlyScorpion Pokemon. It sails on the winds with its limbs extended to strike from the sky. It startles its foes by clamping on their faces and jabbing them with its poisonous stinger."

"Kabuto must've landed in their territory and now they're going to fight!" he noted.

"Gli!" Three of the Gligar dived at Kabuto with their claws glowing light-blue to perform Fury Cutter. Kabuto withdrew into its shell, taking the hits as they came, and used Metal Sound to make all the Gligar cover their ears.

"Kabu!" He used Brine on one of them, but didn't see a pair of Gligar coming from behind, making him take damage from their Rock Smash attacks. Kabuto then used Ancient Power to get even and was attacked simultaneously by 10 of them with their X-Scissor, knocking him into the air.

"Oh no!" Davin exclaimed as Kabuto was hit in mid-air by Poison Jab. When it landed on the ground, Davin immediately came from behind the tree. "Stop! Don't attack it any further!" As soon as they noticed him, the Gligar forgot about Kabuto and came after him and Hana.

"Uh oh." Davin picked up Hana and ran straight at them, but as they came closer, he dodge-rolled past them and went over to the Shellfish Pokemon. "Kabuto, are you ok?"

"K-K-Kabut-to..." It groaned. Davin suspected that it was poisoned from the Gligar's Poison Jab. The group of Ground/Flying Pokemon came at them, all 18 of them ready to use Fury Cutter.

"Don't worry, Kabuto, we'll protect you. We won't let them make you suffer any more pain!" The boy released his two Pokemon to Hana's side. "Tempest, use Whirlwind!"

"Star-ly!" He flapped his wings rapidly to create a strong breeze that threw them off temporarily.

"Zapter, use Mirror Shot, and Hana, use Leaf Storm!" The combo of the beam of green and the power-filled leaves struck all of them at once.

As this happened, Kabuto was staring at them, impressed by their strength and that they were fighting to protect him.

"Gli! Gli Gli!" One of the Gligar said to the others. They all nodded and took to the skies, diving down a second later with all of them split into groups of six as the right group used Rock Smash, the middle group Fury Cutter, and the left group Poison Jab.

"Get ready! Use Solar Beam, Gyro Ball, and Aerial Ace at full power, let's go!" Magnemite and Starly rushed in with their moves while Chikorita quickly charged and released her attack. The mixture of power created an explosion that spread almost across the route, which made Davin go over and shield Kabuto's body with his own.

"Kabuto?" It said in surprise.

When things were seeable, every one of the 18 Gligar had fainted while Zapter and Tempest were panting with injury marks on their bodies. As soon as they recovered, the Gligar quickly took off and fled into the sky.

"Way to go, guys, you did it!" Davin congratulated as he sat on the ground with Kabuto in his arms. "How are you feeling, Kabuto?"

"Kabu, Kabu..." He moved his body weakly.

"Hana, can you come here for a sec?" She walked over to him. "I want you to heal Kabuto. Can you do that?"

"Chiko!" She nodded. Hana went closer to Kabuto and touched his body with her leaf. The leaf began to glow as a light green aura engulfed his body and made the injuries he got from the fight disappear. Eventually, Hana took the leaf away and Kabuto jumped out of Davin's arms, feeling much better.

"Great, Hana! Now do the same with Zapter and Tempest." The Chikorita went over and did the same method to fully restore her friends' health. "Excellent!"

Davin looked at the shellfish. "Kabuto... Hana and I really sorry we hit you so hard with Solar Beam back there. Can you forgive us?"

"Kabu, Kabuto!" He grinned at him.

Davin smiled back. "With that being said, how do you feel about coming with us? You'll get to see a lot of new places that you've never seen before, battle against new types of Pokemon, and we'll be guiding you every step of the way. Doesn't that sound fun?"

"Kabuto!" It agreed.

Davin held his chin in thought. "Hmm... let's see... You look kind of like a... like a... like a Corazza!"

"Mag?/Star?/Chiko?/Kabu?" All four of them tilted their heads in confusion of the bizarre sounding name.

"Well, Kabuto's shell covers most of its body, and last time I checked, Corazza means shell in Italian." Davin clarified.

"Kabuto...?" He thought about how that name would be like for a few seconds and agreed. "Kabuto!"

"Corazza it is then!" Davin took out a Poke ball and tapped Kabuto's shell with it. He was absorbed inside and after three beeps, the ball sealed itself with a flash of white sparks. The trainer triumphantly held it in the air and shouted, "Our new friend is... Kabuto!"

"Starly!/Chikori!/Magnemite!" Tempest, Hana, and Zapter cheered.

Recalling all of them back into their Poke balls, Davin pulled out his Pokegear to see where the closest gym was and grinned. "The next gym is in Eterna City, which is just north of this route. I just have to cross the bridge that connects them together and I'll be there!" He put the Pokegear away and retraced his steps to head toward, what he hoped to be, the town where he'll get his second Sinnoh gym battle victory.


	7. Chapter 7 - Dangerously Rude Awakenings

"WHAAAAAAAT?!"

Davin was horribly shocked. He had made his way across the bridge that led to Eterna City, but when he arrived at the gym, there was a sign on the doors that read, "_Sorry, but the gym leader is currently unavailable. She has gone to Floaroma Town to do important business and will return as soon as possible._"

"That's just great." Davin said with his head lowered. "Now what am I going do?" He stood there in thought for a few seconds until he suddenly lifted his head up and smiled. "Of course! The sign said the gym leader is at Floaroma Town, which is..." He looked up the location on his Pokegear. "...right next to Route 205, and I can get there easily by going through the Eterna Forest. That way, I can ask her if she'll have a gym battle with me there; it's perfect!"

With his plan set in mind, Davin made a quick stop at Eterna's Pokemon Center before heading out on his travel.

* * *

Davin entered the first part of Route 205 that lead to Eterna Forest, which consisted of a big pond that could be crossed over using the wooden bridge that was built and the typical trees and grass; there was also one tree that was colored unusually gold.

"Let's see..." Davin said as he walked across the bridge, looking at his Pokegear. "The entrance to the forest should be just up ahead, so once I'm in there, I'll have to try to get through the forest's-" With his attention paid on the Pokegear while he walked, Davin bumped into something and fell on his back.

"Eh... what the-?" Davin looked up to see what he walked into and saw a large green and white Pokemon who was asleep; he got out his Pokedex for more data.

"Snorlax, the Sleeping Pokemon. Snorlax can digest any kind of food, even if moldy or rotten. What sounds like its cry may actually be its snores or the rumbling of its belly."

Davin checked out the Pokegear. "It says that Eterna Forest is straight ahead, but... it looks like this Snorlax is blocking the entrance." He stood up from the ground, walked over to it, and pushed on its head. "Hey! Wake up! I need to get through!"

"Snoooorrrrr..." It snored. Davin continued to push, but it just wouldn't budge.

"Egggh! How am I going to get this thing out of the way?" He held his chin and tapped his foot thoughtfully. "I guess there's no other way." He sent out his Magnemite from its Poke ball. "Zapter, I want you to use Thunderbolt to wake this Snorlax up."

"Magnemite." It nodded and faced the creature, releasing a blast of electricity that zapped Snorlax's body, but the bear-like Pokemon continued to snooze.

Davin gasped with astonishment. "Try Electro Ball!" The hurled sphere exploded upon connection, but to no avail.

"Mirror Shot!" The energy beam fired from Zapter's eye with no luck.

"Gyro Ball, and hit it hard!" Zapter spun forward and struck it in the stomach; the only outcome was making it jiggle.

"Ugh... Zapter, come back." He motioned for it to come to his right side as he released Chikorita. "Hana, use Leaf Storm!"

"Chika!" She whipped her leaf to summon the hurricane of leaves only to have them bounce off of Snorlax's body.

"Solar Beam!" Collecting the necessary energy she needed, Hana fired the beam, which created an explosion and had no effect on Snorlax.

"Agggggghh!" Davin screamed in frustration. "Maybe a combined effort will get it out of the way!" His remaining Pokemon were brought out from their confinement.

"Tempest, use Aerial Ace, and Corazza, use Brine!" Starly went first and rammed its target with its body, and Kabuto released the blast of saltwater to soak the Sleeping Pokemon's head. Though both were powerful, Snorlax STILL kept on napping.

Dropping his head, the trainer spoke, "What does it take?! How can a Pokemon sleep after getting hit with so many different moves? To me, this is totally crazy!" He sighed and had his head down for about 10 or 20 seconds until he suddenly brought it up.

"I GOT IT!" That startled his Pokemon as Davin quickly took out his Pokegear and began pressing buttons. "If I remember correctly, the Nurse Joy from Caligo Town who gave me this said that the Pokegear has a radio, which means that maybe I can find a station that can wake up Snorlax."

He scanned through various channels, such as Pokemon music, Street Corner, Professor Oak's Pokemon Talk, and the Variety Channel, until he came upon a specific channel titled, "Poke Flute."

"This'll work. Professor Cypress once told me that a Poke Flute can awaken any Pokemon, and since it's on the radio, I'll just use it to wake up Snorlax." Davin pressed the select button, but a notice came up that said, "_This station is only available in the Kanto region._"

Instead of getting upset, Davin smirked. "Ohhh, I think we can fix that." He looked in his backpack, took out a screwdriver, opened the back part of the device, and began tweaking a few bolts. Eventually, he finished what he was doing, selected the Poke Flute channel, and a soft soothing melody began to play. Zapter and the others were intoxicated by the music and started to dreamily move their bodies to it.

"_Come on... wake up..._" Davin mentally prayed. To his joy, he heard Snorlax irritably grunt a few times and slowly aroused from its sleep as it sat up. "YES! It's finally awake!" But the celebration was cut short as he saw Snorlax glare at him, a glare he thought only existed on the faces of monsters in his nightmares.

He uttered a small 'Eep!' as he turned the music off. "Uh... sorry to have woken you, Snorlax, but... we just wanted to get to the forest, a-and you were blocking the way in, so... we had to wake you up... Y-You understand, right?"

"SnorLAAAAAAAXX!" It bellowed with its stubby arms up in rage. Snorlax then rolled its body towards them at high speed.

"EVERYONE, LOOK OUT!" Davin and the Pokemon hopped out of the way of the oncoming attack. "Remind me to never wake up a Snorlax ever again!"

"Snooor!" It bounced into the air and was planning to crush them with its body.

"Zapter, Thunderbolt!" Zapter came forward and used its moves, but Snorlax kept on falling, regardless of it, and landed on the Magnemite. When it picked itself up off the ground, the Magnet Pokemon was immobilized, causing Davin to recall it.

"Corazza, use Metal Sound!" The shellfish released the loud ringing sound and Snorlax yelled as its ears were suffering.

"Keep it up, Corazza! Tempest, use Wing Attack!" Starly's wings glowed as he flew forward and struck Snorlax with both of its wings.

"Now, Hana! Follow with Petal Dance!" The twister of petals surrounded the large Pokemon as they dealt damage to its body. However, Snorlax managed to break free from them and despite Corazza's Metal Sound still being heard, it created a light blue ball in between its hands and threw it at Kabuto, creating an explosion and sending it flying into the air.

"Corazza!" Davin cried as it landed on the ground, unconscious. As soon as he recalled it, the big bear used Rollout and came for Tempest and Hana. "Combine Whirlwind and Leaf Storm to stop it!" Both moves were successful, but Snorlax knocked them into the air when it made contact. It kept going, circled past Davin, came back around, and struck the two again before they hit the ground.

"Return!" The red light engulfed them as they returned safely to their Poke balls. When Snorlax stopped rolling, it stood on its feet as it gave Davin the same glare it did earlier. "_What can I do? Snorlax is fast, so even if I run, there's no doubt it'll catch and hurt me. Above all, it's too angry to hear me out._" Snorlax started to charge at him with its body engulfed in the aura for Giga Impact. Davin closed his eyes and placed his arms across his head and body to try and defend himself.

"Garchomp, Dragon Rush!"

Davin opened his eyes at the voice as he saw a dragon-like creature dive down from the sky behind him with a light blue aura engulfing its body. Snorlax and it collided into an explosion with the former forcibly flung out of it.

Davin looked to his right and saw a woman with long blonde hair (some of it covering her right eye) with black ribbon-like accessories in it, wearing an all black attire consisting of a shirt, pants, and a long coat.

"Now, Flamethrower!" Out of the smoke, a blast of fire was shot out and struck Snorlax while it was in the air, leaving severe burn marks on its body when it fell.

The woman stepped forward. "Snorlax, this boy means no harm to you. Please, go back home and rest."

"Snor-lax?" It said with confusion. It looked over at Davin with a normal gaze, making the boy feel a bit uneasy, and it simply turned around and walked away.

"Phew." He breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much. If you hadn't come when you did, who knows what would've happened to me?"

"No problem." She smiled as her Pokemon flew to her side.

"And who's this Pokemon?" Davin said as he opened up the Pokedex.

"Garchomp, the Mach Pokemon. It is said when Garchomp runs at high speed, its wings create blades of wind that can fell nearby trees."

"Your Garchomp is amazing! You must've trained it really well for it to be that powerful."

"Why, thank you. It's always nice to hear compliments like that."

"Uh..." Davin twiddled his fingers. "Would it be alright if I... pet it?"

She giggled. "Of course, go ahead!"

He approached the slightly intimidating Pokemon and gently rubbed its head. Garchomp enjoyed that and it let out a happy growl, which made him smile and laugh a bit.

When he stopped petting it, he faced the woman. "My name's Davin."

"Glad to meet you. I'm Cynthia." A question popped into her head. "By any chance, are you planning on entering the Sinnoh League?"

"Yeah. That's the reason why I woke that Snorlax up, to get to Floaroma Town and battle the Eterna gym leader. There was a note at the gym saying she was there and I figured instead of waiting, I'd go there myself and see if she would battle me there."

"Hmm... well, you know, you can get to Floaroma Town by going back to Route 207, walking through Oreburgh City and Oreburgh Gate, heading north of Jubilife City, and going across Route 204."

"Yeah, but I figured that going through the Eterna Forest and going through the second half of Route 205 would be better, considering it's a bit of a shortcut."

"I see... On another note though, I saw how your Pokemon battled and they honestly didn't look too good."

"Don't let that fool you. In truth, I'm an experienced trainer and I've competed in two leagues, where I made it to the top 4 in the first one and the top 3 in the second. But I left most of my Pokemon back home because I felt like if I trained with Pokemon I caught here in Sinnoh, I would raise them to be the best that they could be to win this league."

"An interesting method." Cynthia stated. She recalled Garchomp to its Poke ball and turned her back to him. "I get the feeling that you and I will meet in battle one day, Davin."

He was a bit confused by the statement, but smiled and said, "I hope so, 'cause I really want to battle against Garchomp and see what it can do when my Pokemon become stronger!"

Cynthia nodded. "We'll just see."

She waved goodbye as she walked off into the distance. Davin looked back and smiled before entering the Eterna Forest, now more determined than before.


	8. Chapter 8 - Insects At Their Best

"Chikori!" Hana placed her leaf on Zapter's body as it restored its health and made it feel better.

"Magne, Magnemite!" Zapter levitated and bounced happily.

"Good job, Hana." Davin complimented as he sat crossed-legged on the grass underneath a tree. Tempest and Corazza were sitting beside him, fully healed as well.

Davin had entered the Eterna Forest and walked a few paces before stopping to rest at the tree he was currently sitting at. Since he didn't want to waste time by going back to the Pokemon Center in Eterna City, it was there that he brought out his Pokemon and used Hana to heal them after the Snorlax incident. He had passed by an eerie house near the entrance that was called the Old Chateau, but decided not to look into it due to the thought of something frightening and horrible might happen to him if he entered.

Davin stood to his feet. "So, you guys ready to move out?"

"Chika!/Star!/Kabu!/Mag!" They all nodded in unison and they were each recalled to their Poke balls.

Davin ventured on into the forest, which was slightly dark because the trees blocked the sun from showing all of its light, as he thought about the Eterna gym leader.

"_Hmm... you know, I never did find out what kind of Pokemon she uses. Even so, I'm considering using Zapter, Hana, and Corazza to battle. But what if she uses a type that's strong against one of them or a type that's barely effective against their moves? What if I'm making the wrong decisions? What if I..._"

BOOM! An explosion cut him off from thinking. He could see smoke rising to the top of the forest.

"What could that have been?" Davin took off running to the source of the smoke.

* * *

"Starmie, use Cosmic Power!" A Psychic ordered. The purple star's body glowed green as its defense and Special defense power was increasing.

"Paras, use X-Scissor!" A Bug Catcher commanded. The orange crab's claws glowed blue and it jumped forward, slashing Starmie in an X-like fashion.

Davin arrived at the scene and took out his Pokedex.

"Starmie, the Mysterious Pokemon. Regardless of the environment it lives in, Starmie's body grows to form a symmetrical geometric shape. The red core at the center of its body sends strange radio signals into the sky when it's night."

"Paras, the Mushroom Pokemon. It's doused with mushroom spores when it's born, and as its body grows, its back begins to sprout large mushrooms."

"Solar Beam! Go!" The mushrooms on Paras' back glowed as they absorbed as much sunlight as they could. When it was done, it fired a white beam that struck Starmie and made it faint.

"Starmie, no!" The Psychic said as he knelt down to it. "You did well. Return!" It disappeared inside the Poke ball and he stood up. "Your skills are impressive. I look forward to the day we battle again." He bowed to the boy and walked away.

The Bug Catcher petted the crab. "Great work, Paras! That was our eighth win in a row today!"

"Paras, Paras!" It said happily.

Davin was a bit impressed with the boy's strength and he decided to make himself known by saying, "Not a bad win." and walking over to him. "So, you've won eight battles with that Paris, huh?"

The catcher nodded. "I've trained Paras a lot, and it's one of the strongest you'll ever see!"

"That so? Well, my name's Davin, and I challenge you to a 3-on-3 Pokemon battle!"

"I'm Hanley. We accept your challenge!" He said with confidence.

Seconds later, they decided to have their battle in an open field located in the center of the forest.

"All right." Hanley threw a Poke ball. "Let's go, Burmy!" He released a bug-like creature with its body covered in leaves.

Davin's Pokedex

"Burmy, the Bagworm Pokemon. To shelter itself from the cold, it covers its body with a cloak made of materials from its habitat."

"Tempest, I choose you!" The Starly materialized in mid-air.

"Burmy, use Tackle!" It threw its body at the starling, but missed when the bird flew out of the way.

"Tempest, use Wing Attack!" His wings glowed white and he struck Burmy to the ground with the right one.

"Use Bug Bite!"

"Counter with Whirlwind!" Before Burmy could bite it, Tempest blew it away by creating a gust of wind. "Aerial Ace!"

"Protect!" A blue-green forcefield surrounded it and Starly was knocked backwards when he hit it.

"Use Quick Attack!"

"Burmy, Hidden Power!" Green mini-orbs circled around Burmy's body before they were fired at Tempest. He agilely avoided the move and tackled the bug.

"Tempest, Aerial Ace!"

"Protect, Burmy!"

The forcefield appeared again, but Davin ordered for Tempest to pull up, which it swiftly did. As soon as Protect was gone, he called for it to come back down and strike, leaving a super effective hit on it and making it faint.

"Burmy!" Hanley cried.

"Nice work, Tempest." Davin said as he called back.

Hanley returned Burmy and threw another Poke ball. "Ledyba, go!" A ladybug Pokemon hovered in the air as it was sent out.

Davin's Pokedex

"Ledyba, the Five Star Pokemon. Ledyba is very timid, and will not move unless it is in a group."

"Zapter, let's go!" The thrown Poke ball released the Magnet Pokemon.

"Ledyba, use Mach Punch!" Ledyba's hand glowed light blue as it flew towards Zapter and landed a blow to its body. Despite it being super effective, Magnemite was alright.

"Zapter, Electro Ball!"

"Light Screen!" Ledyba's eyes glowed gold and produced a golden box to surround it, protecting it from Electro Ball.

Davin grunted. "Use Gyro Ball!" Zapter started spinning as it went towards the target.

"Dodge it by using Dig!" The ladybug dove straight into the ground and left behind a hole. Zapter stopped spinning and looked around only to have Ledyba come up from underneath it and attack, sending it backwards.

"Come on! Use Gyro Ball again!" As it did, Hanley called for another Dig and Zapter was temporarily left alone again. "Use Thunderbolt inside the hole!" The electric blast traveled underground and Ledyba was brought back up as it was being electrocuted.

"Gyro Ball, quick!" Zapter hit its mark on the enemy; right then, Light Screen appeared and shattered. "Great! Wrap this up with Electro Ball!" Zapter tossed the electric orb and it exploded upon connection. Ledyba fell out of the smoke, unconscious.

Hanley calmly recalled his Pokemon. "Alright, Paras, it's your turn!" The mushroom crab appeared on the grass. "Time for victory #9!"

"We'll see." Davin called back Zapter and sent out his Chikorita. "Hana, use Leaf Storm!"

"Chiko!" The leaves were summoned and sent, but Paras showed no signs of taking much damage.

"Paras, use Struggle Bug!" It shuddered its body as it released a blast of energy at Hana, causing super effective damage.

"Struggle Bug? What's that move do?" Davin asked.

"It's a bug type move that lowers your opponent's Special Attack every time it hits." Hanley explained. "It's one of the reasons why Paras wins so many of its battles."

"Hmn... Hana, use Double Team!" Chikorita copied herself and was now surrounding Paras.

"Paras, use Spore on all of them!" The Mushroom Pokemon jumped into the air and released a whitish-brown powder from its mushrooms. They spread over the Chikoritas until one fell down and went to sleep, causing the others to disappear. "Now, X- Scissor!" Still in the air, Paras crossed his claws into an X and dove down to successfully strike the sleeping Hana.

"Wake up, Hana! Before it's too late!" begged Davin.

"Struggle Bug!" For the second time, Hana was hit by the blast. "Now, X-Scissor!" Paras slashed her body in an X-like fashion. "Solar Beam!"

"Hana, wake up and use _your_ Solar Beam!" As if the timing was right, Chikorita woke up and began absorbing sunlight into its leaf while Paras did the same with its mushrooms. Soon, both had the necessary energy to attack.

"FIRE!" Both trainers shouted in unison. Hana fired a golden beam from her mouth as Paras did the same. Both collided with each other as the users tried to push each other's beam their way.

"Come on, Hana! Give it all you got!"

"Paras, don't hold back! Keep going!"

Eventually, the beams exploded and sent both Pokemon skidding backwards towards their trainers. When they got back up, both of them stared at one another while panting and having damage marks on their bodies. While Hana panted, Paras' body started to glow white.

"Is it...?" Davin gasped.

Hanley's eyes widened. "Paras is evolving!" It started to grow bigger as a large hump was forming on its back. When the glowing stopped, the hump was shown to be a big mushroom and Paras was a totally different Pokemon.

Davin's Pokedex

"Parasect, the Mushroom Pokemon, and the evolved form of Paras. The larger the mushroom on its back grows, the more powerful the spores that it scatters become."

"All right, Parasect, use X-Scissor!"

"Dodge and use Leaf Storm!" Hana jumped away from it and released the leaves, but Parasect took it with no problem.

"Struggle Bug!" Parasect shuddered and released the blast as it hit the Chikorita in mid-air.

"Hana!" Davin cried. She fell to the ground and lost consciousness.

"Yeah! We did it, Parasect!" Hanley cheered as he hugged it. "Now, we have nine straight wins!"

"Para, Parasect." It smiled.

Davin picked up his Pokemon. "Hana, are you alright?"

"Chiko..." She said weakly.

"Get some rest." He said as she disappeared inside.

"What'd I tell ya, Davin? My Parasect _is_ strong!" Hanley bragged.

"Well, you may have won that match, but with two wins, _I'm_ officially the winner."

"Maybe so, but it doesn't matter to us. Parasect and I will keep on winning and doing our best in our battles ahead!"

"Para-sect!" Parasect nodded.

"That's good to hear, Hanley." Davin said honestly. "If we ever meet up again, let's have another battle. I'll be sure to beat you and Parasect, no doubt!"

"It's a deal!" Hanley confirmed.

After saying goodbye to each other, Hanley walked off towards the entrance where Davin came in while the latter ventured forward through the dark Eterna Forest, ready to get to Floaroma Town and have his battle with the Eterna gym leader.


	9. Chapter 9 - Static Combatants

"Hmm... according to the Pokegear, Floaroma Town should be to the right of here."

Davin had made it through the Eterna Forest, even though it took him like an hour, and he was currently standing on a bridge pathway above the water that was below it; another one of those gold colored trees was located behind him.

"Okay, so all I have to do is head right and I'll be able to find the gym leader in Floaroma Town." He smiled. "Then let's go!"

"Bi!" That cry was heard before a blast of electricity was seen in the air to the left of where Davin was standing.

"What?" He ran over to the general direction and he saw a huge building just near the water along with many big windmills that were practically all over the area. Ignoring that for a minute, Davin looked over to a patch of grass and saw a short yellow creature with two horns on its head that looked like prongs on a household plug. It also had black stripes on its body along with a lightning bolt-shaped mark on its chest of the same color.

"What's that?" he questioned as he took out his Pokedex.

"Elekid, the Electric Pokemon. Elekid's horns have an electric current that flows through them, which will shock the unwary if their hand is put there."

"Whoa!" he said in awe. Across from it, Davin saw a white and blue squirrel on all fours with its yellow cheeks sparkling with electricity and checked its Pokedex data as well.

"Pachirisu, the EleSquirrel Pokemon. It makes electricity with the pouches in its cheeks, and uses its tail to shoot electrical charges."

"Bi, Bi!" Elekid said with a glaring look. It rotated its arms as electricity sparked between its horns and released a bolt of the same energy from it, instinctively making Pachirisu dodge.

"That was Shock Wave!" noted Davin.

"Chipa!" While in the air, Pachirisu started spinning as yellow stars were released, prompting Elekid to dodge as well.

"And that was Swift." the boy said.

"Biiiiiiii-BI!" What happened next took Davin by surprise. Elekid's right arm was suddenly engulfed in fire and it managed to punch Pachirisu so hard that it was knocked into a windmill.

"It knows Fire Punch?! That's awesome!" Most people wouldn't be as surprised as Davin was since Elekid is a fairly common encountered Pokemon and the moves that it can learn are well known, but Davin had no knowledge of things like that because of living in a far off region like Varex and not taking time to study the Pokemon that lived there.

Elekid started to walk over to Pachirisu so it could finish it off, but a sudden yell of, "That's enough!" made it stop. Both Davin and it looked at the building to see a little girl running out of it and coming to the squirrel's aid. "Are you ok, Pachirisu?"

"Chipa Chipa." It looked and smiled at her.

"Elekid, that's enough practice for one day, don't you think?" she said to it sweetly.

"Bi." Elekid lowered its head.

The girl giggled and then noticed that Davin was standing there. "Oh, a visitor! Are you here to see my daddy?"

Davin held his hands up. "Oh, no. I'm just-"

"Daddy!" she called into the building. When she did, a black-haired man in a white lab coat came out.

"What is it, darling?"

She pointed to Davin. "This boy came here to see you!"

"No, no, no, no!" Davin shook his head. "She got the wrong idea. I was just passing by."

"I see..." The man looked down to his daughter. "Darling, what have I told you about calling me every time someone comes here?"

"Sorry, daddy. I thought it was someone important this time." she said innocently.

"It's alright." he said, patting her head. He then took notice to the Pokemon at her feet and turned to the other one on the grass. "So how did practice go today, Elekid?"

"Bi Bi!" Elekid winked and gave him a thumbs up.

Davin walked toward it and knelt down to meet it at eye level. "That Fire Punch you used a minute ago was awesome! You're really a strong Pokemon!"

"Bi!" It proudly stuck its chest out.

The boy turned to the man. "Actually, this Elekid was the reason I came over here; I saw it use Shock Wave and I was curious as to what it was." He stood to his feet. "So, from what you said, that battle I saw was a daily thing?"

"That's right." He nodded. "You see, this Elekid comes here often because it's attracted to the electricity that the windmills around here make. Nowadays, it comes here to spar with my daughter's Pachrisu."

"And that's why Pachirisu has become a lot stronger, isn't that right?" she asked the squirrel.

"Chipa Chi!" It nodded with a smile.

"Really now?" Davin stared at the Electric Pokemon for a second and grinned. "Hey, Elekid. If you really want to battle a tough opponent, how about facing off against my Magnemite? Think you have what it takes to beat it?"

"Bi Bi Bi!" It nodded with confidence.

Davin went to the other side of the grass and took out a Poke ball. "Zapter, come on out!"

"Magnemite!" It spoke when it came out.

"See that Elekid over there?" He pointed to it. "What do you say we give it a good battle?"

"Mite Mite!" It answered with a nod.

"Alright, Elekid, you've got the first move!"

"Bi Bi!" Elekid ran forward with its fist ablaze.

"I knew it would use Fire Punch first. Zapter, use Electro Ball!" A ball of electricity formed between its magnets and when it threw it, Elekid knocked it away with its other fist, causing Davin to gasp, and proceeded to punch Zapter to cause super effective damage. "I can't believe it deflected Electro Ball!"

Elekid chuckled at Davin's shock. "Bi-Bi Bi Bi."

"Zapter, use Gyro Ball!" It spun towards its foe with blue orbs on its magnets.

"Bi." Elekid smirked. Its entire body became engulfed in electricity and it ran towards Zapter, managing to tackle it and send it spinning into a tree.

"What move was that?" questioned Davin.

"That's Elekid's Wild Charge!" The girl shouted.

Her father nodded. "Though it's a powerful move, it causes the user to take recoil damage every time it's used." This was proven true when Davin saw Elekid flinch as the sparks from Wild Charge crackled around its body.

He looked towards his Magnemite, who was lying on the ground in front of the tree. "Get up, Zapter! It's time to use Mirror Shot!" The Magnet Pokemon complied and returned to the front of its trainer, firing a green beam of energy from its eye. Elekid countered with Shock Wave and the two attacks began to fight for dominance. After a slight struggle, Mirror Shot overpowered and struck Elekid with its power.

"Now, Thunderbolt!" A blast of electricity escaped from its body and Elekid suffered from its damage.

"Gyro Ball!" Zapter started spinning again and Elekid decided to use Wild Charge again to repeat what happened previously. However, Zapter rotated around its attempt, much to its surprise, and rammed into it from behind. Elekid skidded across the grass and was left unconscious.

"We win!" Davin pumped his fist.

"Bi... Bi-Bi..." As it started to rise up from the ground, Davin went over and knelt down to it.

"Are you ok?" he asked.

"Bi Bi Bi." It stood up and brushed itself off as if it were saying, "Please, that was nothing."

Davin chuckled. "Told you my Magnemite was strong. Right, Zapter?"

"Mag Magnemite!" It levitated to Elekid and nodded.

"Bi Bi." Elekid turned away and folded its arms.

"MAG-NEMITE?!" Zapter said angrily. Davin guessed that Elekid just insulted it.

"Bi Bi. Bi Bi Bi!" Elekid taunted.

"Miiiite!" Zapter was steaming. They both put their heads together as they glared at each other with rage.

"Hey, calm down, you two!" Davin pulled them apart and they turned away from each other with disgust.

The girl giggled. "Elekid must be cranky that it lost."

"Elekid never was one to take losing lightly." added her dad.

Davin recalled Zapter and stood up. "Well, that was fun, but I need to get going. It's almost dark and I need to get to Floaroma town A.S.A.P."

"Well, it was nice of you to visit. Please feel free to come back anytime." The man said.

"Yeah! Then maybe we can have a battle and I can beat the pants off you!" his daughter added.

"Chipa Chipa!" Pachirisu agreed.

Davin laughed. "Ok, I'll be seeing ya." He began to walk off to the other direction.

"Bi Bi Bi!" Elekid shouted, causing Davin to turn around as it ran up to him.

"What's up, Elekid?"

"Bi! Bi-Bi Bi Bi! Bi!" It said as it moved its arms wildly.

Davin was confused as the man walked over to them. "I believe Elekid wants to go with you." Davin blinked in surprise. "Because it lost to your Magnemite, it must want to go with you so it can have a rematch and defeat it."

"Is that true?"

"Bi!" It nodded.

"And you're ok with me catching it?" he asked the man.

"Of course. The Valley Windworks has such limited space, so it would be good for Elekid to go out and see the world."

The girl walked over to the Pokemon. "Elekid, we'll miss you. If you can, come back to play sometime, okay?"

"Chipa Chi." said Pachirisu.

"Bi, Bi!" It winked and gave a thumbs up.

Davin knelt down and held his chin in thought when Elekid turned back to him. "You're gonna need a nickname if you're coming with me, so... how do you feel about the name Viggo?" *Pronounced 'Vee-go' for those who aren't familiar with the name.*

"Bi, Bi Bi!" It nodded and grinned.

"Cool." Davin took an empty Poke ball, tapped Elekid's head, and absorbed it inside. The button flashed red three times before it sealed itself with white sparks. "Alright, I caught an Elekid!" he cheered with the ball raised in his hand.

* * *

By the time Davin got to Floaroma Town, the sky turned red, signifying that the sun was setting.

"Man, I hope she's still here." he said, turning his head left to right. Floaroma was your average town, only it was completely on grass and there were flowers as far as the eye could see; he saw lots of people, but didn't know which one of them was the gym leader.

He walked as he said, "Aw, man. She probably already left by now. To think, I came all this way to challenge her when I should've just been patient and waited at Eterna City. But I don't want to go all the way back just to ge-... huh?" Davin noticed that there was some kind of entrance through the trees that were at the back of the town. Curious as he was, he walked through it and came across a big wide garden of flowers that spread throughout the area. He also noticed a house and one of those golden trees. "Wow... This place is beautiful. There are so many flowers."

"Which is why this place is called the Floaroma Meadow." said a feminine voice. A young woman with dark orange hair wearing cargo shorts of the same color, green boots, and a green poncho over a black skintight shirt walked over to him.

"Well, it sure is a sight to see." Davin said sadly before he sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"It's just... I came to Floaroma Town because the Eterna City gym was closed and a note said that the gym leader was here, and since I didn't feel like waiting 'til she got back, I came here to see if she would battle with me for the badge." He sighed again. "But I guess that was a dumb idea to begin with."

The woman chuckled. "Don't be so sure."

"Huh?" he asked, turning his head towards her.

She held out her hand. "I'm Gardenia, the Eterna City gym leader, and I'd be happy to battle you here for the badge."

Davin's whole world brightened on hearing those words as his eyes shined and he rapidly shook her hand. "Thank you! Thank you so much! My name's Davin, and let me tell ya, I am SO glad to meet you!"

"That's great, but... can you let go of my hand now?" Her voice shook along with her hand.

"Oh, sorry." He sheepishly grinned as he let go. "So, can we start right now?"

Gardenia looked towards the sky. "That might not be such a good idea. After all, it is getting dark." She turned her head back to him. "Let's have our battle tomorrow morning in this exact spot."

"Sounds good to me!" He nodded.

Later, Davin went back to the town's Pokemon Center and rented a room. As night came around, he was already in bed with his five Poke balls shrunken and on the other pillow beside him.

"Get some rest, guys." He patted them. "Tomorrow... we get our second badge!"


	10. Chapter 10 - Vs Gardenia

The next morning, Davin woke up around 10:00 a.m. and started to get dressed as quickly as possible. When he was brushing his teeth, he thought as he looked in the mirror, "_Today's the big day! My gym battle with Gardenia for my second Sinnoh badge!_" He started brushing his upper jaw. "_Okay, I asked a lot of people yesterday about Gardenia and they all said that she was a Grass type user. That means Tempest and Viggo have the advantage since they both know moves that are super effective to that type._" He filled his mouth with water, gargled, and spat in the sink. "_But what if it's 3-on-3? What other Pokemon could I use against her?_" He grabbed a white towel and started drying his face as he exited the bathroom. "_Guess we'll find out..._"

* * *

5 minutes later, Davin and Gardenia stood apart from each other in the Floaroma Meadow; they were going to battle close to the entrance so that none of the flowers would get hurt.

"I hope you're ready, Davin, because I won't be going easy on you!"

"You bet I'm ready, and I wouldn't have it any other way!"

Gardenia held a Poke ball in her hand. "Here are the rules: We each use only three Pokemon and the battle is over when all Pokemon on either side is unable to battle. In addition, only you can substitute your Pokemon."

Davin nodded. "_So it's just as I thought. Well, let's see what her first Pokemon will be._"

"Let's go, Turtwig!" The thrown ball opened to let out the small turtle Pokemon as it cried out, "Turtwiiiiig!"

"Viggo, I choose you!" His new Elekid popped out of its ball in a flash of light and Davin knelt down to it. "Listen, Viggo, I know you only wanted to come with me so you could fight Zapter again, but as part of that deal, you and I are going to have to work together and battle lots of Pokemon and trainers as we go on our journey. Is that alright?"

"Bi-Bi!" It gave him a wink and thumbs up.

"Thank you. Now, let's win this!" Viggo got into battle mode as it tried to intimidate Turtwig with a glare. "Start with Fire Punch!" Its fist caught on fire as it dashed towards the Tiny Leaf Pokemon.

"Turtwig, use Grass Knot!" Its eyes glowed green and two blades of grass tied themselves into a knot. When Viggo was near it, the knot caught its foot and made it fall flat on the ground. "Now, use Razor Leaf!" Turtwig swung its head to release the attack as the Elekid was struck by the barrage.

"Bi Bi!" Viggo was angry now and it showed it by spinning its arms as the horns on its head created an electric current between them.

"Viggo, use Shock Wave!" Electricity escaped from its body and Turtwig was hit as it yelled out in pain.

"Turtwig, Grass Knot!"

"Jump and use Fire Punch!" Viggo evaded the tying grasses and went down from the air to deliver the fiery blow.

"Reflect!" A clear glass wall appeared in front of Turtwig and it blocked the Fire Punch as soon as Elekid touched it.

"Shoot! Now Fire Punch won't work until it wears off." Davin recalled Viggo with frustration and sent out his replacement. "Corazza, let's go!" The Shellfish Pokemon materialized into the battle.

Gardenia was a bit surprised. "A Kabuto? Why's he using that? It's both a Rock and Water type, which are weak against Grass types like Turtwig."

"Corazza, Metal Sound!" The loud and piercing sound waves emitted from its shell, making Turtwig wince as it hit its eardrums.

"Ancient Power!" The white spherical energy was created between its claws and Corazza fired it to cause Turtwig damage when it hit.

"Are you okay, Turtwig?" asked Gardenia. It stood up from its fall. "Use Grass Knot!"

"Metal Sound again!"

"Twiiiii-iiiiiggg!" Turtwig cried as it was forced to hear more of the aggravating noise.

"Now, Corazza! Use Brine!"

"Kabu-to!" The saltwater stream hit its mark on Turtwig and the turtle fell flat on the ground, unconscious.

"Turtwig, no!" Gardenia came over and picked it up in her arms. "Are you alright?"

"Turt-wig." It mumbled as it looked at her.

"You did well, take a good rest." The Poke ball absorbed it within its interior.

"Great job, Corazza! I knew you could do it!" Davin said as he held it.

"Kabu, Kabu!" It smiled.

"That was pretty good, Davin, but it's not over yet. Cherrim, you're up next!" The Blossom Pokemon came out from the Poke ball in its Overcast Form. To Davin's surprise, he saw Turtwig's Reflect shatter as soon as it appeared.

"Thanks for the help, Corazza. You get some rest." Davin recalled it and sent Viggo back out. "Alright! Use Fire Punch!"

"Cherrim, use Safeguard!" A green barrier surrounded its body as Fire Punch was blocked for the second time in this battle.

Davin grunted. "_Gardenia's good; she's taught and raised her Pokemon how to defend against their weaknesses and use moves to throw their opponent off guard. I'm going to have to think if I want to win this._"

"Magical Leaf!" Glowing light-green leaves were released from its head.

"Dodge and use Wild Charge!" Viggo jumped to the side and raced towards Cherrim with its body charging with electricity.

"Use Grass Knot!"

"Jump, Viggo!"

"Bi-Bi!" It narrowly jumped over the moving grass and successfully rammed into Cherrim, leaving electric sparks crackling all over its body.

"Fire Punch!" The Elekid struck Cherrim with a blow and as soon as it did, the grass Pokemon's entire body was literally burning with flames as it shrieked. "Yes! Fire Punch's burn effect kicked in!"

"Oh no! Cherrim!" Gardenia cried. When the flames settled, Cherrim was dazed.

"Okay, Viggo! Let's show them your Rolling Kick!" With its left foot on the ground and its right foot in front of it, Elekid began to spin towards Cherrim at a rapid pace, eventually leading to a hit and an instant knockout.

"Ah! Cherrim!" Gardenia said as she ran over to it.

"You're doing great, Viggo! Let's keep it up!" Davin said.

"Bi!" It turned and nodded to him.

Gardenia returned to her place after she recalled Cherrim. "Roserade, let's go!" A bipedal green Pokemon with white hair, two hands that resembled red and blue flowers, and a cape was sent out.

"A Roserade?" Davin looked it up on the Pokedex.

"Roserade, the Bouquet Pokemon. Roserade's sweet aroma attracts prey, where it then spews poison. The more toxic it is, the sweeter it smells."

"You may have gotten past Turtwig and Cherrim, but I'll warn you now that Roserade is no pushover. Right, Roserade?"

"Rose-rade!" It nodded as it crossed its arms.

"Bring it on, my Pokemon and I love a good challenge! Don't we, Viggo?"

"Bi Bi Bi!" It flexed its arms in agreement.

"Then, let's get started! Roserade, Poison Sting!" It fired multiple purple darts from its rose-hands.

"Take it head on and use Wild Charge!" Elekid did as told and the needles went through its electrified body as it ran.

"Dodge it!" Roserade swiftly jumped into the air right when Viggo made its attempt to strike. "Use Stun Spore!" An orange power rained down on Viggo and it suddenly couldn't move.

"No way!" Davin was partially shocked.

"Roserade, use Magical Leaf!" As it began to land, it shot out the glowing leaves as they struck the immobile Elekid. When its feet were on the ground, Gardenia called for Grass Knot and it looped around Viggo's foot and tossed it high into the air; the Electric Pokemon passed out when it fell.

"Return, Viggo!" Davin told it that it did great when it was in its ball and Corazza reprised its role as the Elekid's substitute. "It's time to get serious! Corazza, use Scratch!" It crawled over to its foe with its front claws glowing white.

"Stun Spore, Roserade!" The Bouquet Pokemon twirled as the orange powder came in contact with Kabuto and stunned in its tracks.

"Fight it, Corazza, and use Metal Sound!"

"Jump to get away from its range!" The noisy sound waves were created, but Roserade was unaffected due to the fact it followed orders and was now high in the air. "Magical Leaf!"

"Counter it with Brine!" Corazza shot the water against Roserade's leaves, but there was no contest between the two as Magical Leaf easily overtook Brine and slashed Corazza's body with its power. "Are you ok? Can you go on?"

"Kabu... Ka..." It fell into unconsciousness when it tried to get up.

Sadly, Davin returned the Kabuto and took out his last Poke ball. "Tempest, I choose you!" The small bird flew into battle. "Tempest, you're my last hope. I'm counting on you!"

"Starly!" It nodded.

"This'll be over quick. Use Stun Spore!" The orange powder was released yet again.

"Blow it away with Whirlwind!" A strong breeze created from its wings and the powder began to disappear. "Now, Wing Attack!" Wings glowing and outstretched, it soared over to Roserade as quickly as it could.

"Poison Sting!" The poisonous darts came at a fast pace and knocked Tempest right out of the air.

"Tempest, are you alright?" Davin asked. Tempest tried to get up, but its body suddenly flashed purple and it went back down. "Hey, that's..."

Gardenia chuckled. "Now that your Starly's poisoned, this'll be a guaranteed win. Roserade, Grass Knot!" Two blades of grass by Tempest's feet tied themselves around it and threw him back and forth before it tossed him aside. "Now, Poison Sting!" Rosrade spun as the darts hit Tempest, one after the other in rapid succession. "Magical Leaf!" More damage was taken by the Flying type as the leaves hit and pushed it on its back. When it tried to get up, its poison condition denied it.

"Tempest, no!"

"Star... a-arr..." It said while struggling to get back up.

"This next attack should finish it! Roserade, Poison Sting!" The darts went flying as Tempest was almost up off the ground.

"Tempest, here it comes!" warned Davin. It was too late as the Poison Sting struck Tempest's back and caused a small explosion that sent in the air as it wailed painfully.

"TEMPEEEEEEEEEESTT!"

"Star?!" Hearing his trainer's yell, Tempest opened his eyes and managed to regain its flight in the air as its body started to glow white.

"What?! It can't be!" Gardenia gasped.

"Tempest...?" Davin was almost speechless. Tempest's body started growing as its wings became longer. When the glowing stopped, a new bird Pokemon was seen in the sky. "Tempest! You evolved into Staravia!"

"Stara~via!" Tempest cried as Davin took out his Pokedex.

"Staravia, the Starling Pokemon, and the evolved form of Starly. It lives in forests and fields, where fights over territory ensue when flocks collide."

"That's so awesome! Alright, Tempest, use Aerial Ace!" It dove down towards Roserade with streaks of light engulfing its body. "Even Aerial Ace looks stronger now!"

"Roserade, use Poison Sting!" Tempest avoided the darts and struck Roserade in the center of its body. "Roserade!"

"Wing Attack!" Before Roserade could recover, the Grass/Poison Pokemon was struck simultaneously by Tempest's glowing wings.

"Stun Spore!"

"Whirlwind!" A whole typhoon of wind was created from its wings, so big that both Gardenia and Roserade cringed from it.

"Now, Tempest, let's wrap this up with Quick Attack!" Staravia flew at high speed with a streak of light following behind it and Roserade was hit by the move, resulting in it falling on its back and fainting.

"YEAH! You did it, Tempest! You really did it!" Davin couldn't help but run over and give it a hug. "You were awesome! You've really made me proud!"

"Star, Staravia!" It smiled.

"Good job, Roserade. You've earned a good rest." Gardenia called it back and walked over to the winners. "Well, you did it, Davin! Looks like your trip was worthwhile after all, congrats!"

"Thanks, Gardenia." He smiled.

The gym leader held out her hand to reveal a symbol that looked like three green and white rhombuses combined together. "This Forest Badge is yours. Thank you for a great battle."

Davin happily took it and raised it into the air. "My second Sinnoh gym badge; the Forest Badge is mine!"

"Star, Starav!" cheered Tempest.

"And as a bonus, I'd like you to have these." Gardenia held out three circular jars, filled with an orange substance, stacked on top of one another to him. "This Honey can help you on your travels."

"How?" he asked as he took them.

"See that golden tree over there?" She pointed to it. "Those are Honey trees. If you put honey on them, Pokemon will become attracted to it and gather to eat it. When that happens, you'll be able to capture them."

"Cool!" he said in excitement.

Gardenia turned to leave. "Well, it's been fun, but I gotta get back to Eterna City. Wouldn't want to keep my other challengers waiting." She waved goodbye and exited the Floaroma Meadow.

Davin knelt down to Tempest, opened one of the Honey jars, placed a finger in it to get some out, and held it to the starling. "Try some, Tempest. You've earned it after today."

Tempest put his mouth to the finger and started licking it. "Staravia! Star Star!" he said happily.

Davin chuckled. "Must be good."

Davin put the Honey in his bag, called Tempest back to his ball, and exited the Floaroma Meadow, his mission on getting the Forest Badge having now been accomplished.


	11. Chapter 11 - The Worst Lunch Break Ever

"...And there! That should do it." Davin said proudly, having finished setting up the small table he brought. After leaving Floarmoa Town, Davin decided to take a little break in an open field on Route 204 near several ponds and lakes. "Ok, everyone, come on out!" His current team materialized in front of him as they each let out a cry.

"Magnemite?" Zapter turned to its left when it noticed Viggo had came out beside it.

"Bi Bi Bi!" Viggo grinned deviously at it as he wiggled his fingers in mock greeting.

"MIIIIIIIITTE!" screeched Zapter angrily as it immediately went up to Davin. "MAGNEMITE! MAGNEMITE! MAGNE MAGNEMITE! MITE MITE MAGNEMITE MITE MITE MITE!"

"Hey, Zapter, calm down!" Davin said as he put his hands up in defense. "I know you don't like Elekid, but I let him join the team because he wanted to have a rematch with you." Zapter angrily looked at him in confusion as he put his hands down. "In a way, Zapter, having Viggo around will be good for you. You two seemed to have formed a rivalry together back at the Valley Windworks, and it's a known fact that rivals can help each other do their best by making one another strive to beat them at something!" Davin walked over to Viggo and knelt down as he put his hand on its back. "I see that you both have a lot of potential, and maybe that potential can be reached if you guys battle with each other now and again, don't you think?"

"Maaag..." It averted its eye from him as it thought and nodded with its eye unhappily half opened. "Magnemite."

"Good." Davin stood up. "Now, who's ready to eat?" They all cheered in unison. The trainer set out a bowl of Pokemon food in front of everyone, with the exception of Zapter since it didn't have a mouth to eat with.

"Zapter, your meal's coming up in just a second!" Davin went into his backpack and set down a medium-sized blue and rectangular device near the others. "Enjoy!"

"Magnemite!" It went over and placed itself on the object. Zapter started rubbing its body against it as electricity came out of the device and went through the Magnemite's body, making it feel very happy.

"It's a good thing I asked Professor Cypress to build that pad generator. Since Zapter can't eat food and only feeds on electricity, it can satisfy itself by using the pad." Davin noted as he saw the Magnet Pokemon. He went over to the table and sat down on the chair he provided for himself as he started to eat a sandwich. While eating, he took out his badge case and stared at his two badges.

"_The Coal Badge and the Forest Badge... I'm off to a decent start, I guess._" Davin pulled out his Pokegear as he looked at the locations. "_Hmm... It looks like if I go back to Oreburgh, head through Route 207, and go through Mt. Coronet, I'll just have to get by Route 208 and I'll be at Hearthome City, where my next gym battle will be._" He paused his eating for a moment as he looked at Zapter, who was enjoying his meal. "_If we're going through Mt. Coronet, Zapter's going to have to get a lot _**stronger**_ in order for my plan to work._" He resumed his chewing. "_On another note, is Hearthome gym really the best place to go from here? I mean, people at the Floaroma Pokemon Center says the gym leader travels a lot and is hardly ever at her gym, so would it be better to go to another one that's nearer?_" He paused. "_..._ _..._ _..._ _..._ _..._ _..._ _..._ _nah, I'll just take my chances._"

"Bi!" Viggo was finished eating and the sound of Zapter's pad generator caught his attention. "Bi..." He stared at the Magnemite for a moment until an idea popped into his head and a malicious grin spread across his face.

" Mag-nemite. Mag-nemite. Magne, Magne, Magnemite! " Zapter sung as it continued sliding.

"Bi-Bi." chuckled Viggo as he tiptoed behind Zapter. When he was close enough, he began spinning his arms to charge power between his horns and released a high voltage Shock Wave on to both Zapter and the generator. Though the Magnemite didn't feel anything, the generator was absorbing too much electricity and that eventually caused it to explode with Zapter on it.

"Huh?!" Davin turned his head at the sound. When the smoke cleared, Zapter was on the ground and its entire body was entirely black from the explosion. Viggo was laughing and pointing at Zapter.

"MAAAGNEMIITE!" Zapter shook the black off its body and got in the Elekid's face. "MAG MAGNEMIIITE!"

Viggo turned away from him and folded his arms as he smirked. "Bi Bi. Bi Bi, Bi Bi Bi."

"MagNE!" Zapter fired an Electro Ball with no warning and hit Viggo straight on.

"BI!" Viggo got mad and retaliated by using Fire Punch.

"Guys, knock it off!" Davin shouted.

"Miiiiiiiiiite..." Zapter said as its body began charging electric energy.

"Biiiiiiiiii..." Viggo said as his arms were spinning and his horns were crackling with electricity.

"Zapter! Viggo! Stop RIGHT NOW!"

"MAGNEEEEEEEEEE!/BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!" Both of them launched a super charge of Thunderbolt and Shock Wave. When combined together, it created a huge discharge that spread throughout half of the area, electrocuting Davin and their teammates in the process. This went on for 15 seconds until both ran out of juice and fell backwards, steam hissing into the air around the area from the electricity.

"Uuuuuugh..." Davin groaned as he tried to pick himself up while a few sparks were on his body. Surveying the area, everything around them was singed, including the trees, grass, plants, and all of the Pokemon as they lied motionless. "Jeeeeeez..." He heard the sound of struggling and looked to see Zapter and Viggo trying to sit up; despite what just happened, they still glared at each other with anger as electric sparks crackled around their bodies. "_Come on, you two! Enough!_" Davin was too in pain to project his thoughts out loud.

"Ggggggrrrrrr." They heard.

"What was that?" Every single bush that was near them began to rustle, signifying that more than one of something was approaching. "W-wha-?! What's going on?" Through the bushes, a whole pack of different Pokemon came out with their bodies singed and their faces outraged. All of them included 6 Starly, 6 Staravia, 5 Bidoof, 7 Bibarel, 4 Shinx, 8 Luxio, 3 Kricketot, 5 Budew, 5 Roselia, 10 Wurmple, 8 Silcoon, 8 Cascoon, 4 Beautifly, and 7 Dustox. "Oh... dear... God..." Davin whispered upon the sight.

"Mag.../Bi..." The electric Pokemon were stunned as well.

Davin stood up as best as he could as he faced the angry Pokemon. "Please... don't be mad... It was an accident. These two just got into a fight and released their electricity without knowing." They hardly looked convinced. "We're really... sorry. We meant no harm to you guys, we swear," He gulped. "Are we at an understanding?" The Budew and Roselia released their Stun Spore and paralyzed the remaining conscious beings. "Is that a no...?" Davin croaked as he fell to the ground.

The following things happened: The Shinx and Luxio all used Discharge and made them shout in pain, the Starly simultaneously hit them with Wing Atack, the Staravia followed with Take Down and bashed them one by one, the Bidoof split up and used Hyper Fang to bite down on all of them, the Wurmple fired Poison Sting while the Silcoon and Casoon used String Shot, the Beautifly used Silver Wind, the Dustox used Sludge Bomb, the Bibarel used Water Gun, the Kricketot used Bug Bite, and the Roselia and Budew used Shadow Ball.

"Pl... Please... Please st-... stop..." The boy barely whispered in agony. Zapter and Viggo were on the bridge of fainting.

The wild Pokemon nodded to each other and the 33 base forms were preparing to use Hidden Power, the 19 secondary evolutions preparing for Secret Power, the Cascoon and Silcoon ready to fire Poison Sting, and the 18 final evolutions charging their Hyper Beam.

"D-... Don't... At-t-tack... Pl-ease..." Davin struggled to speak as his vision was blurring.

Right when they were about to fire, someone yelled, "Drapion, Cross Poison!" and out of nowhere, X-shaped poison rays were fired and struck every single Pokemon, one by one. Suddenly, something fast came by and struck them all while they were down as its body was covered in streaks of light, forcing them to run away from the attacker's strength.

Someone walked into the field with a big and purple scorpion walking from behind him, and he looked over at the boy, who had already fallen into unconsciousness before the person arrived.


	12. Chapter 12 - Berate And Battle

"Mmmmmmmm..." Davin groaned as his consciousness returned. "Wha-... What happened...?" He slowly opened his eyes and found himself staring at a blue tiled wall. He shifted his eye to the right and saw a closed door with a red rectangular panel above it with a white nursing needle depicted. As Davin started to sit up, he noticed that a green blanket was covering him and that he had a few bandages on his body, such as on his arms, face, and legs. "Where am I?"

"The Jubilife City Pokemon Center." Davin turned to his left and saw a guy approaching him. He had green hair, a part of it sticking up, and wore a sleeveless black and orange shirt along with orange pants. "Good to see you're awake."

"Who are you?"

"My name's Aaron." he introduced before taking a seat next to him. "That was pretty nasty back there. What did you do to make all those Pokemon attack you like that?"

"Ah!" It was coming back to Davin now: He and his Pokemon were having a lunch break when Zapter and Viggo got into a fight and released a whole bunch of electricity around the area and made the Pokemon living there so angry that they all attacked them. "_That was so horrible..._"

Suddenly, a ding was heard and the red light coming from the panel on top of the door went out. The said door automatically slid open and Nurse Joy stepped out. "Oh, you're awake." she said when she saw the boy sitting up. "I'm pleased to tell you that your Pokemon are feeling much better." After she said this, a Chikorita ran past her legs and jumped into Davin's lap, nuzzling his stomach.

"Hi, Hana." he said as he stroked her back. "Are you alright?"

"Chiko, Chiko!" she said happily. Then, a Staravia flew out of the room along with a crawling Kabuto, and they sat beside Davin on the bench.

"What about you, Tempest? Corazza?"

"Star!/Kabu!" They smiled at him.

Davin returned it, but then looked to Nurse Joy. "Um... where's my Magnemite and Elekid?"

She frowned. "Unfortunately, they suffered much more severe injuries than the others and it's going to take a while for them to heal."

Davin frowned, too. "Oh... okay." With that, the nurse went back through the doors as they closed and the red panel lit up again.

"So, what happened back there?" Aaron repeated the question.

Davin sighed. "It was one big mishap. We were having lunch and my Magnemite, Zapter, and my Elekid, Viggo, got into a fight. That led to them releasing their electric attacks all over the area and making those wild Pokemon furious at us." He sighed again. "It was one of the worst things I've ever experienced as a trainer."

"I see..." Aaron said. "Well, what were they fighting about?"

"No particular reason. They just don't like each other, and Viggo started it by messing with Zapter." He blinked. "...And I knew that when I first caught Viggo."

Aaron was surprised. "Well, if you knew that, then why did you catch Viggo in the first place?"

Davin sat silent for a moment. "I don't want to talk about it..." When Aaron nodded, Davin looked him in the eye. "Speaking of which, how did you know I was attacked?"

"Because I'm the one that saved you and brought you here." Aaron grinned. "Well, actually, it was this guy who did the work." He opened a Poke ball and the same purple scorpion from before came out of it.

"A Drapion!" Davin recognized as he took out his Pokedex.

"Drapion, the Ogre Scorp Pokemon, and the evolved form of Skorupi. Drapion takes pride in its strength because of its sturdy build, taking down its opponents without using its toxins."

"So it was you and Drapion who rescued us. Thank you both so much!" Davin smiled.

"No problem. We were lucky we came by when we did or who knows what could've happened."

"Dra Drap." Drapion agreed.

Aaron stood up. "Make sure you're careful next time; someone's not always going to be there when you're in danger like that." He started walking away with Drapion beside him.

As soon as he was out of sight, Davin stood up as he placed Hana down on the bench where he sat and faced the three Pokemon. "I'm sorry you all had to go through that. I promise that it'll never happen again, I'll make sure of it." After they nodded, he put them back in their Poke balls to get some rest. He turned towards the door where Nurse Joy was working. "Zapter... Viggo..."

10 to 15 minutes later, Nurse Joy was done with the electric Pokemon and called Davin in. The trainer hid behind one of the stretchers to peek at them and saw them faced away from each other, but in depression, not anger. Davin sighed and made himself known by standing up and walking from behind the stretcher. "Zapter? Viggo?"

"Magne?/Bi?" They both gasped and turned their heads. "Magnemite!/ Bi Bi!" They jumped off of the table they were on and ran over to him as he picked them up in a hug. Without a word, Davin recalled them to their Poke balls and walked out of the room.

* * *

When he exited the Pokemon Center, he went behind a tall white building and called them back out. "Are you both alright?" he asked with a fake smile.

"Mag!/Bi!" They nodded in unison.

"Good." To their shock, Davin slapped both of them across their faces, resulting in him shaking his left hand in pain after he hit Zapter's steel body. "WHAT THE HELL'S THE MATTER WITH YOU TWO?! HOW COULD YOU?!" Both of the Pokemon were appalled. "Because of your little fight, we almost got killed! How could you do that?!"

"Bi Bi _Bi_ Bi-Bi Bi! (But it was _his_ fault!)" Viggo replied, pointing at Zapter.

"Mag?! _Mag_ Mag Magnemite Mag-Mag Magne! (What?! _You're_ the one that started it by shocking me!)" Zapter retorted.

"Bi Bi Bi Bi Bi-Bi Bi Bi, Bi Bi-Bi Bi Bi Bi Bi-Bi. (Maybe if you weren't so annoying, I wouldn't have had to do that.)" he said with his arms folded.

"MAAAAG! (WHAAAAT!)" It started charging electricity in its body to attack as Viggo did the same.

"ENOUGH!" Davin shouted, making them jump and look at him. He said, "I thought that since you two were rivals, it would be good to have you together so you could help each other get stronger, but I never thought you would take it _that _far and put our lives in danger!"

"Oh, so _that's_ it?" Aaron said as he stood behind Davin, who immediately stood up when he looked behind him. "You figured that since they would fight each other, they would get stronger by it, right? That's the reason you caught Viggo?"

"Y-Yeah." Davin nodded.

Aaron folded his arms. "You know, that's not always a good idea. Sometimes, you need to know the Pokemon's true personality first before you make decisions like that." He looked at the Electric types. "Both Zapter and Viggo have aggressive personalities, which is sure to cause trouble if their anger takes over them."

"No, that's where you're wrong, Aaron!" Davin protested. "You're right about Viggo being aggressive, but not Zapter. Ever since it's been with me, Zapter has always been mellow and, besides battles, never once have I seen him get into a fight with another Pokemon."

"Really?" Aaron asked before thinking a moment. "If that's the case, why not just release Viggo so you won't have any problems?"

"No way! Despite his personality, Viggo is a tough battler, and he could help me win the Sinnoh League if I train him right!"

"I don't know, Dav-"

"No! I'll prove it to you! Let's have a double battle; maybe if they're forced to work together, they're relationship will improve. Come on!"

Aaron sighed. "All right. But I'll warn you that I'm stronger than most trainers, so it won't be easy to win against me."

Davin nodded. "Zapter, Viggo, you up for it?"

They both looked at each other from the corner of their eyes and unsurely nodded.

* * *

To avoid any interference, Aaron and Davin agreed to battle deep within the area of Route 203, an open field which was mostly surrounded by tress. Zapter and Viggo stood together in front of their trainer with glares that said they were ready to fight.

"'Kay, Aaron, we're ready when you are!" Davin said.

He nodded and threw out two Poke balls. "Drapion and Vespiquen, let's go!" The big scorpion appeared along with a humanoid bee-like Pokemon.

Davin's Pokedex

"Vespiquen, the Beehive Pokemon. Vespiquen releases various pheromones to make the grubs in its body do its bidding when it fights its foes."

"You can have the first move, Davin." Aaron offered.

"Thanks. Zapter, use Electro Ball on Vespiquen!" The orb of electricity was created and thrown at the foe, but when it hit, Vespiquen looked unfazed. "What?!"

"My Vespiquen has been raised to endure attacks that are super effective against it. You'll need more power than that if you want to defeat it." Aaron explained.

"Bi!" scoffed Viggo. Abruptly, he ran at the Bug/Flying type with his body cloaked in electricity.

"What are you doing, Viggo?! I didn't say use Wild Charge!"

"Drapion, use Cross Poison!" It crossed its arms as its claws glowed purple and it opened them to release an X-shaped poison at Viggo, which exploded on contact with the Electric Pokemon and sent it skidding backwards.

"Viggo, what'd you do that for?! I didn't even give you an order!" Davin scolded.

"Bi, Bi!" he said as he tried to stand.

"Now, Vespiquen, use Power Gem on Magnemite!" An orange ball of energy formed between its hands and it tossed it.

"Destroy it with your Thunderbolt!" The electric blast collided with Power Gem, but failed to eradicate it as the ball kept going and eventually exploded on Zapter.

"Use Aerial Ace on Elekid, Drapion!" White streaks surrounded Drapion's body as it charged in.

"Viggo, Fire Punch!" His fist ignited with fire as he ran and tried to punch, but it backfired as Drapion landed a hit before it could get the chance.

Davin was shocked. "_This guy wasn't kidding. When he said he was stronger than most trainers, he really meant it!_"

"Mag.../Bi-Bi..." They groaned as they tried to get up.

"Let's finish this! Drapion, use Ice Fang on Magnemite, and Vespiquen, use Attack Order on Elekid!" The Ogre Scorp Pokemon's fangs glowed light blue as they shot out two bolts of ice while multiple grubs came out of the Beehive Pokemon's lower abdomen and were sent to attack.

"Zapter, use Mirror Shot! Viggo, use Shock Wave!" Both fired their respective moves, but the opponent's took them out with ease and blasted them into the air; they fainted before they hit the ground.

"And that's that." Aaron said with a grin.

"You two okay?" Davin asked as he kneeled beside them.

"Maaag..." Zapter groaned.

"Bi Bi..." Viggo said with no particular emotion.

Aaron called back his Pokemon and walked over to Davin. "Well, we battled... but have they begun to like each other?"

Davin looked down at them "Well?" The Electric types looked at each other briefly before turning their heads away, causing him to sigh. "Guess it was pointless after all."

Aaron sighed as well. "What else can I say, Davin? Looks like it's up to you to settle this."

"Yeah..." The boy sighed as he returned his Pokemon and stood up. "By the way, you're Pokemon were stronger than I expected. I didn't know you were serious when you said you weren't like most trainers."

"Of course. I am a member of the Sinnoh Elite Four, after all." He smiled.

Davin's jaw dropped. "Sinnoh Elite Four?! Why didn't you tell me that BEFORE we started the battle?!"

"I thought you would get scared and back out of it."

"Well, you're... sort of right..." he sheepishly admitted.

Aaron chuckled. "Just keep working with those two, and I'm sure you'll get things right." He turned and walked out of the field as Davin remained standing there, looking at the Poke balls in his hand.

"_Zapter and Viggo... I guess the best thing I can do for now is keep them apart._" He placed them in his pockets and looked towards the north. "Well, there's nothing else to do now except to go to Hearthome City." Davin steadily made his way towards the field's exit, hoping that things would turn out alright between the Electric types.


	13. Chapter 13 - Zapter gets Discharged

"All right, Davin, your Pokemon are fully healed." Nurse Joy said as she held two Poke balls in her hands to the black haired boy.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy." Davin took the Poke balls and placed them in his pockets before exiting the Oreburgh Pokemon Center. The trainer had made it to the aforementioned city, but he wasn't planning on staying long as his main purpose was to get to Hearthome City like he had planned. He went to Route 207, where he previously had problems with Corazza, and turned right towards a cave, a cave that was a location in which he knew well. "Mt. Coronet..."

With no further waiting, Davin entered the dark cavern. It was like any other cave only with certain rock formations and four small lakes of water that were separate from one another. As soon as he took three steps into the cave, Davin took a Poke ball from his pocket and manually opened it to release Zapter.

"Zapter, we're going to do some training in this cave." Davin stated.

"Mite?" it said with a bit of confusion.

"This cave is a part of Mt. Coronet, a place where you can gain power if you improve your skills," he explained. "All you have to do is battle some of the wild Pokemon in this cave, and you'll be twice as stronger than you are now. Doesn't that sound great?"

"Magnemite!" Zapter nodded with interest.

"Awesome. Now let's get started!"

As they went forward, Davin secretly frowned. "_I don't like lying to Zapter, but I just want what's best for it. And I believe this'll help in a big way._"

* * *

Zapter and Davin went deeper into the cave until they finally came across a Pokemon; it was blue and circular with yellow eyes.

"Get ready, Zapter!"

"Magnemite!" It went forward as Davin took out the Pokedex.

"Bronzor, the Bronze Pokemon. Researchers believed that Bronzor reflected like a mirror in the distant past. Nothing appeared when X-ray photos were taken to check its body structure."

"Alright, Zapter, use Thunderbolt!" A blast of electricity was shot from its body.

"Broooonz..." Bronzor said as its eyes glowed light blue. The Thunderbolt glowed the same color and it was redirected at Zapter, but the Magnemite was unaffected.

"Electro Ball!" Zapter threw the electric orb at Bronzor and it slammed into the cave wall when it was hit. "Now, Gyro Ball!" It rotated itself forward, but a red X appeared in front of Bronzor and was launched, stopping Zapter from spinning when it hit.

"It used Imprison," Davin noted as Bronzor started using its own Gyro Ball. "Zapter, Mirror Shot!" The Steel type beam was useless as Bronzor slammed into the Magnemite. "Are you ok?"

"Mag-nemite!" It nodded.

"Thunderbolt!" The previous event was repeated when Bronzor used Confusion to send it back, causing Davin to grin. "Now, go into it and tackle Bronzor!" Zapter flew forward and its body became engulfed in the Thunderbolt. It then proceeded to ram the Bronze Pokemon into the wall again, electric sparks crackling on its body.

"Good job!" Davin cheered when Bronzor fled. "You feel any different?"

"Maaaag..." It paused for a moment before shaking its head.

Davin sighed. "Oh, well. Let's keep going."

* * *

Few minutes later, another Psychic Pokemon came into their sights. It looked like a yellow bell with limbs and red and white tassels.

Davin's Pokedex

"Chingling, the Bell Pokemon, and the pre-evolved form of Chimecho. The orb inside its mouth makes a ringing sound when Chingling hops. It can emit high-frequency cries to deafen its opponents."

"Zapter, use Mirror Shot!" The Magnemite fired a green beam from its eye that hit the small Pokemon, who hadn't noticed they were there until now. "Electro Ball, go!" Chingling jumped out of the way and released a loud and painful sound from its mouth to make Zapter flinch and Davin cover his ears; as its mouth was open, the orb that the Pokedex mentioned could be seen vibrating rapidly.

"That's a loud Uproar!" Davin said with his teeth gritted. "Zapter, Thunderbolt!" The Uproar was stopped when Chingling was hit by the Magnemite's electricity.

"Ching!" Chingling gathered electricity into its own body and fired a beam, but Zapter showed no reaction to it.

"Charge Beam isn't effective on other Electric types. Zapter, use Gyro Ball!" The Bell Pokemon suffered a hit and got knocked into a rock, where it fell unconscious. "Good, Zapter!"

"Mite!" It nodded. Right then, Zapter's body started to glow.

"ALL RIGHT!" Davin did a jump as he shouted. Zapter's body seemed to be splitting as it grew and eventually, the glowing stopped and a Pokemon that looked like three Zapters stuck together was revealed. "This is awesome, Zapter! You're a Magneton now!"

"Mag-neton!" The newly-evolved Magnet Pokemon smiled.

"Barel!" Something shouted. They looked in front of them to see a beaver Pokemon on all fours snarling at them.

Davin was surprised. "It's a Bibarel... but what's it doing here in Mt. Coronet?" He then noticed light coming from the far side of the cave. "Must've come in from the outside." He turned to Zapter. "Ready to battle?"

"Ton!" It nodded with determination in its eyes.

Davin pointed to Bibarel. "Use Electro Ball!" Each of its six magnets charged with electricity as currents of it gathered into the center of Zapter's body to form a ball, which it launched. The Normal/Water Pokemon jumped forward and destroyed it by biting down on it, then its body glowed red and it delivered a tackle to the Magneton.

"Superpower... and since Zapter is a Steel type, it was super effective!" The boy spoke as the said Pokemon recovered from the hit. "All right, Thunderbolt!"

"Bi-barel!" The Beaver Pokemon stood on its legs, and as Zapter's move was used, it raised its arms in the air to summon a giant wave of water to block the electricity, and then sent it over to the Electric/Steel type to deal damage.

Davin's face showed shock. "It was able to block Thunderbolt with Surf?!" The shocked look then turned into a smug grin. "Interesting... Zapter, Gyro Ball!" The Magneton began spinning like a wheel as blue orbs appeared on its magnets. Bibarel countered by forming an orange ball in front of its mouth and firing an orange beam from it that exploded when it hit Zapter and sent it skidding across the floor.

"Zapter!" Davin cried.

Zapter struggled to get up. "Ton... Ton... MagneTON!" When it did, its whole body started glowing white like it did before.

Davin's face brightened. "YES! It's finally happening!" Zapter's body started to flatten as its magnets were disappearing, and when the light faded, a metallic Pokemon with a yellow antenna on top of its body, 3 magnets that looked like Magnemite's, and three eyes (two with black pupils and the one in the center having a red one) was levitating in front of Davin, who took out his Pokedex excitedly.

"Magnezone, the Magnet Area Pokemon, and the evolved form of Magneton. Its exposure as a Magneton to special magnetic fields caused its molecular structure to change and make it evolve."

Davin laughed to himself. "_My plan worked! Zapter's a Magnezone now!_"

"Bi-barel!" Bibarel raised its arms and sent forward another Surf.

"Mag-nezone!" Zapter's body became surrounded in a glowing reflective color and as soon as Surf came near it, it was sent back to Bibarel and it suffered double the damage.

"Cool! That was Mirror Coat!" Davin exclaimed. "Zapter, use Thunderbolt!" Electricity escaped from its body, shocking Bibarel and causing major damage.

"Now, finish it with Electro Ball! Let's go!" Instead of its magnets creating the ball, its antenna created it and the sphere was launched from it. Bibarel was hit and fell on the cave floor, unconscious.

"Now, Poke ball, go!" The trainer tossed it and Bibarel was absorbed; it shook three times before the red flashing disappeared and the ball stood still. Picking up the ball, Davin shouted, "Ha-ha, I caught a Bibarel!"

"Zone!" Zapter joined in.

"You were great, Zapter. Not only did you beat Bibarel, but you evolved twice in one day!" He grinned as he put Bibarel's Poke ball away. That grin then turned into a frown. "Unfortunately... there's something I gotta... tell you."

"Mag?" Zapter questioned.

Davin gulped. "Well... you know how I... agreed to let you come with me to Sinnoh?" It nodded. "Well, the truth is... ... ... I only brought you here so that I could evolve you into Magnezone."

"Magne-zone?!" Zapter said in shock.

"I'm sorry, Zapter, but this was an opportunity that I just had to take! I only wanted you to be stronger, that's all. You understand, right?"

"ZONE! MAGNEZONE MAGNE, MAGNE!" It shouted.

"Zapter, listen to me! I had good intentions, but I was afraid you'd get mad if I told you before you evolved, you know?"

"Z-Z-Z-Z-ZOOOONE!" Zapter used Thunderbolt on him out of rage, causing Davin to scream, and it turned away from him.

"C-Come on, Z-Zapter." He stuttered from the attack. "I was only trying to make you the best that you could be." The Magnezone remained silent as its back was still to him, causing Davin to sigh and recall it to its ball. "_Zapter... I was only trying to help..._"

He placed the Poke ball away as he sadly exited Mt. Coronet, now feeling guilty about what he did and making one of his most trusted Pokemon angry with him.


	14. Chapter 14 - Planning and Breeding

"Hmmmmm..." Davin mumbled as he laid flat on his stomach while looking through some bushes. "How long is it going to take for a Pokemon to show up?"

"Bibarel." His latest addition to his team was right beside him in the same position.

Davin had slathered some of the Honey that Gardenia gave him on one of the honey trees on Route 208 and was waiting for a Pokemon to appear so that he could catch it, which is why he had sent out Bibarel.

"Come on... at least one Pokemon should've picked up the scent by now. Where are they?" At that moment, a rustle from the bushes near the tree could be heard. "Finally!" he said in a whisper. A yellow fox-like head poked out of the bushes, soon followed by a body of the same color with what looked like light brown armor on the upper part of ts body. It curiously went up to the Honey and slowly began to lick it.

Davin took out the Pokedex. "Abra, the Psi Pokemon. Abra avoids danger by using teleportation. It sleeps 18 hours a day due to its psychic abilities having a strain on its brain."

"Awesome!" Davin said before turning to his Pokemon. "Now when I give the signal, you jump out and attack, okay?"

"Bib!" It nodded with a grin.

The trainer turned his gaze back to Abra as it was licking. "On three," He said as he lifted his right hand up. "One... two... THREE!" At the call, Bibarel dashed out of the bushes and slammed into Abra while it was distracted, causing the Psi Pokemon to skid backwards.

"Good job, Cobet! Now, use Hyper Fang!" Bibarel opened its mouth and lunged forward, but Abra suddenly glowed and faded away, causing the beaver to turn its head around to see that Abra teleported behind it. The psychic Pokemon then charged its fist with a green energy and went towards Cobet while yellow streaks were spiraling around the energy. "Use Superpower!"

"Barel!" Its body became outlined in red and it attempted to deliver a punch of its own, then Abra teleported again and pulled a sneak attack from Cobet's right with its attack.

"Aw, man! How are we supposed to hit it when it won't stay in one place?!" Davin complained to himself, when suddenly he got an idea. "Cobet, use Surf and surround the area with water!"

The Pokemon raised its arms up as water began to swirl around its body. Abra saw this and immediately teleported, but as soon as it reappeared near Cobet's left, it was splashed by the Beaver Pokremon's technique as the perimeter around them was flooded.

"Alright, use Hyper Fang!" Cobet went over to Abra and bit around its abdomen. It attempted to teleport, but Davin quickly ordered Superpower as a follow up and it was knocked into the honey tree.

"Now let's end this with Hyper Beam!" Bibarel gathered energy into its mouth and launched a beam of orange energy at its adversary, who suffered the hit because it was too weakened to teleport away, and slumped over on the tree's bark.

Davin readied a Poke ball as he thought, "_I've never caught more than one Pokemon while I've already had six with me. I guess it's time to find out what happens when I do. _Poke ball, go!"

The sphere sucked Abra in when it touched it. The red light on the button flashed as it wiggled frequently with both Davin and Cobet staring at it. Soon, the ball stopped and sparks emitted from the ball, but the red light still remained.

Davin joyously picked it up and cried, "Yes! I caught an Abra!"

"Bi, Bibarel!" Cobet joined in.

Right then, the Poke ball shrunk itself. A confused Davin pressed the button on it repeatedly to make it bigger, but it wasn't working. "So _this_ is what happens when you catch a seventh Pokemon," he said. "But the question is, how do I get it to open?"

"Hey, come back here!" A voice suddenly shouted. As Davin was putting the Poke ball away, he turned to his right and saw a small red and yellow Pokemon with black coloring around its neck running toward him. To his surprise, it jumped into his arms when it came up to him.

"Who are you?" he asked as he pulled out the Pokedex.

"Magby, the Live Coal Pokemon. Magby is the pre-evolved form of Magmar. When it spouts yellow flames, it is a sign of good health. When feeling tired, black smoke is mixed in with it."

"Oh, thank goodness you caught it!" A guy said as he ran up to them, panting. He had straight brown hair and was wearing a light blue apron with a Poke ball symbol over a beige collar shirt and black pants. He also wore thin rimmed glasses over his black colored eyes.

"So this Magby is yours?" Davin questioned as he gave him the Pokemon.

"Yeah. I was about serve lunch to him and the others when he just ran out the door," he explained. "Magby, you know better than to go outside without my permission."

"Magby." It said with a sheepish grin on its face.

The guy turned to him. "Thanks again. My name's Gilmer."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Davin," The boy introduced as he gestured to his Pokemon. "And this is my Bibarel, Cobet."

"Bi-barel!" He greeted with a raise of his hand.

"So are you a trainer, too?" Davin asked.

"Well, sort of," Gilmer said. "You see, I'm a Pokemon Breeder. I own a ranch not too far from here."

"Cool! Do you mind if we come and see it?"

"Not at all. Follow me."

* * *

When they arrived at the ranch, Davin's eyes widened. A huge wide open grassfield surrounded by wooden fences with hundreds of Pokemon was revealed to him as they came from the back door of Gilmer's house. "Whoa! This is amazing!" he said. "You raise all of these Pokemon?"

"Yep." Gilmer said as he set Magby down so it could go play with the others. "This ranch is also a daycare business, and I take care of the Pokemon that people bring me. I also mate Pokemon with one another so that they can produce eggs, which is how Magby was able to be born."

"Wow... and you do this all by yourself?"

"I have a couple of assistants, but they went to a convention and won't be back for a few days. Since I have experience as a breeder, it's pretty easy to take care of them on my own."

"I see," Davin nodded as he took in the view. Tauros were stampeding across the field, Buneary were seen hopping from one place to another, Staravia and Swellow flew through the air along with a couple of Ninjask, Mothim, Combee, and Beautifly. A few Wooper and Quagsire were playing in a pond that had Goldeen, Feebas, and Finneon in it, and Sandshrew and Gible were seen digging up dirt and going into the ground. "Such an amazing sight to see..."

"Taillow!" A shrill voice cawed. Gilmer smiled and held out his arm for a purple and white bird to land on.

"Hi, Taillow. How are you doing today?" he asked as it rubbed its cheek against his.

Davin got out his info. device. "Taillow, the TinySwallow Pokemon. Taillow is the pre-evolved form of Swellow. Its gutsy spirit makes it take on opponents that are bigger and stronger than it. During the winter, they fly in search of warm climates."

"That Taillow seems to like you a lot."

"Yeah. I hatched it from an egg that a Swellow and a Skarmory produced about two months ago. We've been good friends ever since."

Davin smiled and laughed a bit. Just then, a question popped into his mind that he wanted to ask. "Hey, Gilmer. Have you ever went on a journey and traveled around to collect badges?"

"Of course. I've traveled around Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn, but I was only able to win the Pokemon League in Johto."

"In that case, there's something I need your help with!"

"Huh?"

* * *

"Hmm... so you're asking me if it's a good idea to use more than your regular six Pokemon on your journey?" Gilmer asked, to which Davin nodded. They were in the living room inside the house, which had brown colored walls, a kitchen near it, a red colored couch,—which Davin was sitting on—and a red colored sofa chair—where Gilmer was sitting—that were both underneath a big light green carpet on the tan colored floor. Cobet and Taillow were happily eating bowls of Pokemon food near the backdoor exit.

"See, I've traveled through the Varex and Hoenn regions, and despite my best efforts I couldn't win either of them. I've raised my Pokemon the way I know how and they progressed well, but I'm thinking that maybe the problem is not only me but the fact that I only use the small amount of Pokemon I catch on my journey. Have you ever did that?"

"Truth be told, Davin, when I started out as a trainer, I attempted to catch as many Pokemon as I could. I tried to make every single one I caught to be their strongest, but I found if I focused on one Pokemon too much, then the others would lag behind." He sighed. "So when I started my second journey, I just used the six Pokemon that I got in that specific region, and that didn't help with winning the league either."

"What are you trying to say?"

"Follow your heart. You're the one who wants to win the Sinnoh League, and it's up to you to make the right decisions in doing so."

"But like I said, my decisions weren't good enough to win any of them. Not to mention that my emotions during the battles tend to cost me the win."

"Then it's obvious that you need to work on your emotional self-control. That, and good Pokemon training, will help you win further." Right then, Davin thought that those words were similar to what Jett said to him after he had lost the Hoenn League. "But getting back to the discussion at hand, do you feel that it may be best to start using more than your usual six?"

Davin sat in silence. "_Maybe... I'm not quite sure. Though, it's possible that I should. I mean, Jett rotated his team and managed to get to the finals of the Varex League. Plus, Maura and Haro rotated their's and made it pretty far. So then... I guess..._" He nodded with a smile. "I'll do it. Ill start catching more Pokemon so that I can finally win a league!"

"Good for you!" Gilmer grinned.

"Which reminds me," He took out Abra's Poke ball from his pocket, which was still locked from being made bigger. "I recently caught a Pokemon and I can't get it to open. Do you know how I can?"

"Well, it's simple. All you have to do is deposit one of the Pokemon you have with you to your PC or send it to someone."

"In that case, I have a favor," Davin said, making Gilmer raise an eyebrow. "Since I'm going to be catching more Pokemon, can I send them to you when I do? I would ask Professor Cypress or Professor Rowan to do it, but I feel that my Pokemon will be a lot happier here with you."

"Hmm... well, I'm not sure, Davin," Gilmer said. "Maybe it would be safer if you sent them to one of the professors."

"Oh, come on! Please?" The breeder didn't respond. "Okay, how about this: You used to be a trainer, right? Then, let's decide this with a battle. If I win, I get to store my Pokemon here, and if you win, I'll send them to one of the professors. Deal?"

Pondering this for a moment, Gilmer stood up. "Alright, deal!" He pointed to the backdoor. "We'll battle in the field, someplace away from the Pokemon."

"Sounds good!" Davin said with his fist balled.


	15. Chapter 15 - Storage for the Auxiliaries

The guys stood at the far end of the field near the fences. As they were getting ready, some of the Pokemon were watching them, interested in what kind of battle will ensue.

"All right, Davin. What do you say to a 4-on-4 match?" Gilmer offered.

"I say, Bring it on!" he answered. "Just hope you're ready to start taking care of my Pokemon."

"Don't get cocky. I'm no pushover, you know," Gilmer pointed his finger. "Taillow, you're up first!"

"Taillow!" It cried as it flew from behind him and on to the battle area.

"Taillow? Didn't you say it hatched a couple months ago? There's no way it would stand a chance against any of my Pokemon."

"Don't be fooled. I put Taillow under some intense training, so it's a lot powerful than it looks."

Davin took out a Poke ball. "Then, let's see! Tempest, I choose you!"

"Stara~via!" he cried as he appeared.

"Well, if you're so confident, then you can have the first move." said Gilmer.

"All right! Tempest, use Wing Attack!" The Staravia flew in with its wings glowing white.

"Taillow, Focus Energy!" It spread its wings out as a white aura appeared around its body. It then took a hit from Tempest's attack, but seemed unfazed. "Now, Steel Wing!" The swallow's wings became solid steel as it flew over and struck Tempest in the neck.

"That was a critical hit!" Davin said.

"That's what Focus Energy does," Gilmer coolly said. "Taillow, use Double Team!"

"Low!" Multiple copies of the Flying type surrounded the Staravia on the ground.

"Blow 'em away with Whirlwind!" Flying up a little, Tempest flapped his wings fast to create the wind, but the Taillow ascended to avoid it. "Use Aerial Ace!" Tempest went after them and the Taillow flew away as a result.

"Cancel the Double Team and use Air Slash!" The clones disappeared and Taillow turned around. A light blue ball of wind formed on its right wing and it threw it at Tempest.

"Dodge it!" The starling tilted his body to the left to evade. "Quick Attack!" A streak of light followed Tempest as he slammed Taillow out of the air.

"You alright?" asked Gilmer. Taillow picked itself up and stood on the ground, ready for more. "Okay, Steel Wing!"

"Tempest, use Wing Attack!" Both birds came at each other with a specific power in their wings, and they clashed as they flew right past each other. To Davin's misfortune, Tempest groaned and fell to the ground, falling into unconsciousness. "Tempest!"

"And that's one win for us!" Gilmer said triumphantly as Taillow smiled and flew around in circles.

Tempest was recalled. "Good job." Davin said to it before sending out his next Pokemon. "This guy won't be as easy to beat! Let's go, Corazza!" The Kabuto materialized into the battle.

Gilmer got out his own Poke ball. "Go, Hippopotas!" A small hippo with a dark brown nose and tan body came out on his side.

Davin checked the Pokedex. "Hippopotas, the Hippo Pokemon. Hippopotas is the pre-evolved form of Hippowdon. It enshrouds itself with sand to protect itself from germs, and it dislikes being wet. Hippopotas can be identified by gender, as males have tan noses and dark brown bodies while females have the opposite."

"You can have the first move this time, Gilmer." Davin said.

"Thanks. Hippopotas, use Sand Tomb!" She released a geyser of sand from the hole on her back as it headed towards the target.

"Dodge, then use Brine!" The Shellfish Pokemon scurried quickly out of the sand's range and fired a blast of salt water, which Gilmer ordered the hippo to dodge.

"Double Edge, let's go!" Hippopotas stomped over to Kabuto with a golden streak trailing behind her and managed to hit him with great force, making him skid backwards. "Crunch, now!" She leaped into the air and dove down with her huge mouth open to bite.

"Metal Sound!" Corazza's shell released a sharp noise. Hippopotas flinched when it reached her ears and Corazza moved away from her when she landed. "Brine!" The attack hit her and pushed her all the way back to Gilmer's side.

"We are not going to lose this! Hippopotas, Toxic!" She spat out a blast of dark purple sludge and it came in contact with Corazza, making him sway a little from the poison.

"Hang in there, Corazza!" Davin called. "Use Ancient Power!" It managed to fire the white orb, but Hippopotas jumped and released Sand Tomb, which surrounded Corazza and became solid to make his movements impossible. "Oh no!"

"Double Edge!" Instead of stomping, she flung herself over and hit the Kabuto with her head. It was then followed by Crunch and she chomped on the top part of his shell.

"_This is bad. Corazza can't move and the poison's getting worst by the minute! What am I going to do?_" Davin then blinked from an idea he had. "_We could try __**that**__..._"

"Now, Hippopotas, wrap this up with another Double Edge!"

Davin waited until she was within 2 inches before he shouted, "Metal Sound, Corazza, now!" and the sharp sound was heard, stopping the hippo in her tracks. "Brine, let's go!" The water hit her face, causing super effective damage. Right then, the Sand Tomb softened back into sand and fell to the ground, freeing Corazza from his prison.

"Use Crunch, go!"

"Counter with Scratch!" He delivered a slash to her face before Davin ordered another Brine, which sent her backwards toward Gilmer and made her faint.

"Hippopotas!" Gilmer cried.

"Yes! Great work, Corazza!" Davin shouted with a raised fist.

"Kabu, ka-" It collapsed to the ground and started to breathe heavily.

"Rest up!" Davin quickly said as it went back into its ball. Gilmer did the same.

"You're pretty good," The breeder complimented. "But playtime's over! Come on out, Ursaring!" The big Hibernator Pokemon materialized and let out a loud roar upon entry.

"I'm not scared in the least!" Davin looked behind him at his Bibarel. "Cobet, I'm counting on you!"

"Bibarel!" It nodded as came into the battle.

"Ursaring, use Brick Break!" It pulled its hand back and went forward, preparing for a karate chop-style hit.

"Use Surf, Cobet!" It unleashed the wave of water, but Ursaring easily broke through it and chopped the Bibarel's head with the side of its hand. Davin gasped.

Gilmer laughed. "Is that all you got? Go and use Fury Swipes!" Ursaring's claws glowed white and it repeatedly slashed Cobet's body, dealing heavy damage.

"You can do it, Cobet! Use Hyper Fang!" It leaped forward and bit the bear's shoulder, but the bigger Pokemon stood there like nothing was happening. Effortlessly, it flicked Cobet off of it and the beaver tumbled backwards on the ground.

"Sweet Scent." Ursaring put its paws in front of it and started to move them up and down as a pink powder filled with light pink sparkles came out and made Cobet dazed by its fragrance.

"Snap out of it!" Davin yelled. "Come on and use Superpower!" But the Beaver Pokemon just stood there and took in the sweet smell.

"Brick Break, go!" For the second time, the Bibarel was karate chop'd on the head, making it fall on its behind. "Fury Swipes!"

"Jump, Cobet!" It obeyed and went high into the air. "Now use Surf and ride the wave!" The tidal wave appeared with Bibarel on top as both came toward the opponent.

"Don't make me laugh! Ursaring, destroy it with Brick Break!"

"Now, Cobet! Use Superpower!" It jumped from the wave and dove down to successfully tackle Ursaring in its stomach, making the bear groan in pain. Gilmer gasped as he realized that Surf was just a distraction so that Bibarel could get in close and make a hit. "Use Hyper Fang and bite it on the head!" The Pokemon opened its jaws and roughly bit down. Ursaring roared in anguish as it tried to pry the beaver off.

"Get it off of you with Fury Swipes!" It attempted to, but when Cobet jumped off on Davin's command, it hit itself hard and started to sway dizzily.

"Alright, Cobet, use Hyper Beam and finish it!" In mid-air, it fired the orange beam of energy and it exploded on contact with Ursaring, creating a field of smoke.

"Ursaring!" Gilmer cried. Just as the smoke cleared, it was seen lying on its back, knocked out.

"Yeah! Now, it's 2 to 1!" The victor celebrated as he pumped his fist. "You were awesome, Cobet! Thanks for the hard work."

"Barel!" It nodded to him as it was returned.

"Great, Ursaring. You did a fine job." Gilmer said as it was returned as well. "Well, it's down to this. If you win, you get to store your Pokemon, and if I win, it'll be a tie and we'll have to decide what to do"

"One thing you should know about me is that when I want something, I won't quit until I get it!" He smirked. Then he frowned as he took out his last Pokeball. "_I hope you've cooled off at least a little bit._ Zapter, I choose you!" In a flash of light, the Magnezone was on the field. "Alright, Zapter, let's win this!"

"Zone!" Zapter scoffed.

"Flareon, let's get to it!" A red-orange Pokemon with a yellow bushy tail, fur collar, and fur tuft on its head appeared from the thrown Poke ball.

"What's that?" The boy questioned as he took out the device that would give him the answer.

"Flareon, the Flame Pokemon. Flareon's fur can release heat into the air so that it doesn't overheat. Its body temperature can rise up to 1,650 degrees."

"I've come to close to lose now." Davin pointed forward. "Zapter, use Thunderbolt!" Unfortunately, Zapter just stationarily floated in mid-air, not wanting to be bothered with its trainer at the moment. "Uh, Zapter, I said use Thunderbolt." Still no response.

"Well, if it doesn't want to attack, then we will. Flareon, use Fire Fang!" Its mouth filled with fire as it jumped forward, but Zapter evaded it by ascending.

"Good, Zapter! Now, use Electro Ball!" Ignoring him, the Magnezone released a blast of electricity from its body that Flareon dodged. "Come on, Zapter! Why won't you listen to me?"

"Flareon, use Flamethrower!" A stream of flames from its mouth was sent the Magnet Area Pokemon's way, but by using Mirror Coat, it sent the attack right back. Instead of taking double the damage, though, Flareon's body glowed with a fiery aura as it was hit.

"What's happening? Why isn't Flareon being damaged?" asked Davin, who was confused at the sight.

Gilmer laughed. "Flareon's ability is Flash Fire; when it gets hit with Fire moves, instead of getting damaged, its own Fire moves increase in power."

"No way!" He said before looking up at Zapter. "You see what you did?! That wouldn't have happened if you had just listened to me!"

"Magne-zone!" It shouted back at him.

"Now, Flareon, use Flamethrower again!" The flame stream was released again and Zapter got hit because Davin distracted it. Angry, Zapter generated a ball of electricity on top of its antenna and launched it, only to have Flareon destroy it with another Flamethrower.

"Listen to me, Zapter! You're not going to win unless you hear my orders, understand?"

"Magne!" Ignoring him again, Zapter's magnets glowed light blue as it began to spin rapidly towards its opponent.

"Fire Spin, go!" A spiraling flame came out of its mouth and trapped the Magnezone within it. "Now, Fire Fang!" Flareon dived into the fire and bit Zapter's body with its fiery mouth, making it exit the swirling fire and land on the ground.

"Are you okay?" Davin asked. It managed to levitate back up, but its body was scorched by the fire and it was panting. "Look, Zapter, I know you're mad about the whole me-bringing-you-to-Sinnoh-only-to-get-you-to-evolve thing and I'm really sorry I tricked you like that, but if you don't let it go and start listening to me right this instant, you're just going to end up hurt, don't you get it?"

Zapter turned his body around a little to glance at Davin. It knew that in his heart he was sorry, but the fact that he only brought it here just so it could evolve was unforgivable to it. When it first heard his confession, it really hurt it to know that he didn't bring it because it was his friend, but only to use it like some kind of tool. Just thinking about it angered the Magnezone. Even though they've been friends since they met at the power plant in the Varex region, it was near impossible for Zapter to forgive him.

With that in mind, Zapter went forward and attempted to tackle Flareon with force.

"No, Zapter! Please don't do it!" Davin begged.

"Okay, Flareon! End this with Fire Blast!"

"Flaaaaaaaar-EON!" It gathered fire energy into its mouth and breathed a blast of fire. Zapter was hit and scorched by the majorly intense flames and it fell flat on the ground, unconscious.

"Zapter!" Davin cried as he ran over to it. "Are you alright?"

"Zoooone." It groaned, trying to move.

"Get in your Poke ball and rest." The Electric/Steel Pokemon turned to red energy as it was sucked in the spherical machine. Davin stood up and looked at it. "_Zapter... What's it going to take for you to forgive me?_"

"So, we have a tie," Gilmer said as he walked up to him after he recalled Flareon.

"Yeah," Davin nodded. "So what happens now?"

"Mmmm..." Gilmer pondered. "I still think it would be better to keep your Pokemon somewhere else..."

The boy sighed. "I understand." He started to walk back to the house.

"But despite that," Gilmer continued. "I guess it'll be fine if your caught Pokemon stay here."

Davin stopped and turned around. "For real?!"

Gilmer nodded. "From what I've seen, you've got remarkable skills as a trainer. As a witness to that, it would be my pleasure to aid you as much as I can to help you win the Sinnoh League."

A smile spread across Davin's lips as he ran over and hugged Gilmer. "Thank you! Thank you so much!"

"It's no problem," He chuckled as Davin let go of him. "So which one of your Pokemon do you want to leave with me first?"

The black haired boy thought about that for a minute and answered, "Before I decide, can you tell me about the Hearthome gym? What kinds of Pokemon does the gym leader use?"

"Fantina? She uses Ghost type Pokemon."

"Ghost, huh?" Davin thought for another a minute and nodded. "Okay!" He took one of his Poke balls from his pocket and handed it to the breeder. "This one, for sure!"

Gilmer took it from him. "Great. I'll take good care of it."

Davin smiled. "And, uh... can I ask for one more favor?"

"What is it _now_?" he asked, sounding a bit annoyed.

"Would it be alright if I stayed here for the night? Hearthome City's just near here, and I need a place where I can get a good night's rest. Plus, I need think of what strategy I'm going to use to beat her."

"In that case, of course you can stay," he said with a grin, which Davin returned. "Now, if you'll come with me, we can heal your Pokemon. They looked like they took a lot of damage from the battle."

"Okay." The two boys exited the field and returned to the house. Excitement filled Davin's head as his Sinnoh journey was beginning to get even better.


	16. Chapter 16 - Vs Fantina

The sun rose early the next morning as it came in through the window of Davin's room. The boy was sprawled out on the bed with his clothes on, a pen and pad near his hands, as he he had been up all night trying to think of a strategy to use against Fantina, the Hearthome gym leader. He was so tired that even when the sun's rays hit his face, he continued to snore with his mouth wide open and drool leaking from his mouth.

"Tai Taillow!" Gilmer's Taillow flew up the stairs to Davin's room with a kettle of tea in its talons.

"Hippo Hippo!" Hippopotas came up soon after with a plate of three Styrofoam cups on her back.

Taillow placed the kettle on the bedside table and landed near Davin's head. "Tai! Taillow Tai Tai!" It barked, trying to wake him up.

Hippoptas jumped on the bed and joined it. "Hippopo! Hippo Hippo!"

Their attempts were useless as he continued to snore loudly. The Pokemon looked at each other and nodded. When Hippopotas set the plate down, Taillow went into the air and prepared to use Air Slash while she jumped back and prepared to use Toxic. At the same, they fired their attacks and they exploded when they hit him, forcing the trainer out of his sleep and making him turn his head wildly in panic while saying rapidly, "Huh?! What's happening? Did a bomb go off? Are we still alive? What, what, what?"

He then looked in front of him and sighed once he regained his composure. "Oh, it was just you two. Did you have to wake me up so harshly?"

"Low Taillow/Hippopo." They apologized with embarrassed expressions. Taillow flew to the kettle and picked it up while Hippopotas got the plate of cups back on her back. The swallow poured the beverage into one of the cups, placed the kettle on the bed, and carried the cup over to Davin.

"Thank you." he said, taking it in his hand. As soon as he took a sip and the taste hit his tongue, he spit it out and startled the Pokemon in the process. "Yuck! I hate tea!" Although he had been offered tea in the past, Davin never actually drank it because he disliked it; the sweetness of it just made him sick for reasons even he didn't know. "I appreciate the thought, but tea just isn't my kind of drink." They nodded.

Davin stretched and yawned before getting out of the bed. "Man... I can't even remember how late I stayed up." He proceeded to go downstairs, where the smell of pancakes and eggs floated into his nose. Looking into the kitchen, he saw Gilmer in front of the oven, moving a pan of fried eggs while using a spatula to place them on a plate. "Morning, Gilmer!"

"Oh, good morning, Davin," he said with two plates of pancakes and eggs in his hands, hiding the fact that Davin's voice out of nowhere scared him a little. "Sleep well?"

"Barely," he answered as he took a seat by the kitchen counter. Taillow and Hippopotas came down right when Gilmer served him his breakfast. "I was up all night figuring out how I can make an easy win at the Hearthome gym." He stuck a fork in his pancake and put it in his mouth.

"I see," Gilmer said. "And how was the tea I sent up to you?"

"Mmm... sorry, but I don't like tea that much."

"It's alright. I just assumed you liked it when I should've asked you if you wanted it first."

Davin started digging into his eggs. "You were just trying to be nice, and I want to thank you for that. Most people wouldn't even bother doing what you did."

"You're welcome." he smiled.

After Davin finished his breakfast, he went outside to the field, where Gilmer was feeding the Pokemon. His Ursaring was helping carry the food while his Flareon was carrying the water.

"I still can't believe you can take care of all of these Pokemon by yourself." he said to the breeder.

"It's not just by myself," Gilmer said as he gave Pokemon food to three Electrike. "Even when my assistants aren't around, I still have my Pokemon to help me out. Right, guys?"

"Ring!/Flare!" Both of them nodded.

"Yeah, that's true," Davin agreed. He then ran deep into the field where his Bibarel was sitting alone near one of the ponds. Kneeling down, he greeted, "Hi, Cobet."

"Bi?" It looked at him for a second before turning its head back sadly. "Barel."

"I'm sorry, buddy, but you're just going to have to stay here for a little while," he consoled as he rubbed its back. "I'll come get you as soon as I'm done with my gym battle, okay? I promise."

Cobet glanced at him for a minute and then nodded. "Bibarel."

"Good." Davin stood up and started walking away, occasionally looking back at the saddened Beaver Pokemon. "Soon, Cobet. I promise."

* * *

"So, you're all set?" Gilmer asked, a while later.

"Yep. I'm going to the gym first thing when I get to Hearthome," Davin answered. "Be sure to take care of the Pokemon I'll be sending you."

"You don't have to worry about a thing," he assured. "Which reminds me, can I see your Pokedex?"

"Uh, sure." Davin handed him the device and Gilmer began tapping the buttons on it for a bit before handing it back to him. "What did you do?"

"I've made it so that when you catch new Pokemon, they'll automatically be sent to me instead of being locked in their Poke balls. That should make things easier, right?"

"Yeah, thanks," Davin nodded. "And, hey, why don't I give you my Pokegear number so you can contact me if anything goes wrong?"

"Sounds good," Gilmer took it and entered his contact number into the phonebook while looking up the Pokegear's number. "All right, we're good to go."

"Cool. Take care, then!" The boy took off to the west of the house towards his destination as he waved goodbye to Gilmer.

* * *

5 minutes later, Davin stood in front of the Hearthome gym, his battle spirit awakening within.

"Alright. I'm going in!" He pushed open the doors and entered to a battlefield on a dark blue tiled floor with four pillars on the edges of the room. "Hello! My name is Davin, and I'm here to challenge the gym leader!"

"Ohohoho!" A voice said. The doors at the back of the gym slowly slid open and a woman with violet hair shaped in four buns spun her way to the battlefield. She wore a dress, the same color as her hair, with a yellow X on it along with white gloves that reached past her elbows and purple high heels. "Bienvenue, Davin, à la Hearthome Gym."

Davin blinked. "You speak French?"

"Oui. I am Fantina, the Hearthome gym leader," she introduced. "I hope you are ready for this fantastiques battle we are about to have."

"I'm always ready! Let's get this started!" he said with a balled fist.

"Ah, such fire I see in you. I can already tell this will truly be a magnificent battle!" Fantina gestured for the referee to take his place at the side of the battlefield.

"The battle between Fantina, the Hearthome gym leader, and Davin, the challenger, will now begin!" he stated. "Each trainer will use three Pokemon. The battle is over when all Pokemon on either side is unable to battle. Furthermore, only the challenger may substitute his Pokemon." He raised both of his hands. "Let the battle begin!"

Fantina took out her first Poke ball. "Duskull, come out, s'il vous plaît!" A black ghost with a skull face and a red eye with two bones pictured on its back emerged from the Poke ball.

Davin's Pokedex

"Duskull, the Requiem Pokemon. It can pass through walls, and wanders aimlessly at midnight. It is said that Duskull will spirit away children that are bad and misbehaved."

Davin enlarged one of his Poke balls and threw it. "I choose you, Tempest!" In a flash of light, the Staravia appeared.

Fantina laughed. "I see. So you chose Staravia because it is a Normal type, and Ghost type moves don't affect it, right? How smart," she smirked. "However, Duskull knows more than just Ghost type moves. Show them your Will-O-Wisp, mon ami!"

"Skull!" Duskull spread its hands apart and light blue fireballs surrounded it. With a motion of its hands, they were sent towards their target.

"I expected that. Tempest, use Whirlwind and blow them away!"

"Star!" He flapped his wings fast to create a gust of wind that made the flames disappear.

"Now, Wing Attack!" Tempest backed up a little before charging at Duskull with speed as its wings glowed white.

"Dodge it!" It moved to the side as Tempest zoomed by. "Will-O-Wisp!" Duskull sent the fireballs and they hit Tempest, knocking him into the ground.

"Come on, Tempest! Use Aerial Ace!" Getting back into the air, it went forward with streaks of light engulfing its body.

"Duskull, Attract!" The ghost blew Tempest a kiss with both of its hands and pink hearts came along with it. The hearts circled around Staravia until they made contact with its body and made it stop its attack. Hearts replaced its eyes as it suddenly began to fawn over Duskull.

"No way! Tempest, snap out of it!" Davin cried out.

Fantina laughed. "It is no use! Tempest is now eperdument en amour with my jolie Duskull." Davin noticed that when she described her Pokemon as 'jolie' (which meant pretty) Duskull blushed and giggled.

"Return!" Davin held his Poke ball up as the red beam shot out.

"Mean Look!" Duskull's eye glowed purple and a black ring was released from it. When it hit Tempest, his body flashed black and when the Poke ball's beam hit him, it failed to work. "Now, Tempest has no choice but to stay out."

"Oh, great..." Davin muttered.

"Now, Duskull, use Ice Beam!" A light blue ray hit the lovestruck bird and made it fall to the ground again. "Will-O-Wisp!"

"Tempest, listen and use Whirlwind!"

"Stara..." He dazed before getting hit with the fire attack.

"One more Ice Beam should do it. Go, Duskull!"

"Duuuuusss-KULL!" She charged up the attack and fired it to the ground, where it made a direct hit.

"Tempest!" Davin shouted as he saw that his Pokemon's eyes were no longer hearts, but were replaced by swirls.

"Staravia is unable to battle! Duskull wins!" The referee announced.

"Ohohoho!" Fantina chuckled. "It appears your plan to defeat Duskull turned out to be a grande disaster."

Davin grunted as he recalled Tempest. "Yeah, well it's a good thing I always have a plan B!" He placed Tempest's ball away and took out a new one. "Let's see what you can do." He lobbed the Poke ball on to the field. "Loki, I choose you!" The ball opened and Davin's Abra had entered the battle.

"What a peculiar choice. You're using a Psychic type against a Ghost type?"

"That's right." Davin nodded.

Fantina grinned. "Then let's just see how this goes. Duskull, mon ami, Attract!" Blowing another kiss, the pink hearts made their way to their target.

"All right, Loki, use Teleport!"

"Abra!" In the blink of an eye, Loki disappeared as the hearts hit the ground.

"Hmm. I expected nothing less from a psychic Pokemon." she commented.

While Duskull looked around to find it, Loki appeared behind her on the ground.

"Shadow Ball!" A black and purple ball formed between its hands and it was thrown at The Requiem Pokemon, exploding when it hit its mark. "Yes! Direct hit!"

"Use Will-O-Wisp!" Through the smoke, Duskull launched the fireballs.

"Teleport, then use Shadow Ball again!" Loki did just that and Duskull was brought down to the ground. "Now, Drain Punch!" A green energy with yellow streaks spiraling around it engulfed its fist as it ran.

"Silly boy. Fighting type moves have no effect on Ghost types. Duskull, use Ice Beam!"

She was preparing to attack when Davin smirked and said, "Shadow Ball, now!" Canceling Drain Punch, it created the move it was told to and it successfully hit its opponent at close range.

"Ahh! Duskull, no!" Fantina cried as she saw her Pokemon on the floor, unconscious.

"Duskull is unable to battle! Abra wins!"

Davin punched the air in victory. "Ha-ha! Great job, Loki! Our plan worked great!"

"Bra Abra!" It nodded to him.

"Merci, Duskull. You did a fine job," Fantina said as she called it back. "Bravo, Davin. You lured me in with Drain Punch, knowing I was going to let my guard down, and you pulled a sneak attack right before my eyes. Je suis impressionné!"

He chuckled. "Well, I never cease to disappoint."

"But how will you fare against my second Pokemon?" She threw her next Poke ball to release a purple ghost with two severed floating hands on to the field.

Davin's Pokedex

"Haunter, the Gas Pokemon. Haunter likes to lurk in the dark and tap shoulders with its gaseous hand. A touch from it is said to cause endless shuddering."

"_Haunter looks a lot stronger than Duskull. I just hope we can get through it without taking major damage._" Davin thought before pointing to the ghost Pokemon. "Loki, use Shadow Ball!" The Abra hurled the dark sphere forward.

"Haunter, Sucker Punch, s'il vous plaît!" The ghost vanished before Shadow Ball could hit. The next second, Loki was punched from its right by Haunter's fist, which was the only part of it that appeared.

"Oh no!"

"Now, use Shadow Claw!" A black aura outlined in purple surrounded Haunter's right fist, which then took the form of a huge claw as Haunter came near Loki.

"Quick! Use Teleport!" Shadow Claw raked the Abra across its face before it could do anything. "Oh, man!"

"So... how is your plan coming along now, hein?" Fantina taunted.

Davin grunted. "Come back, Loki!" This time, the red beam was successful in getting a Pokemon back into its ball. "This isn't what I expected at all. I knew she was strong, but I didn't know her Pokemon were so quick and tricky. What can I do?"

"I see that you are hesitating," Fantina said. "Could it be that you are thinking about forfeiting?"

"Never!" Thinking fast, he sent out his next Pokemon. "Corazza, let's go!"

"Kabu Kabu!" It said when it appeared.

"This should be interesting. Haunter, use Confuse Ray!" Haunter's eyes glowed purple as circular rays were emitted from them.

"Withdraw into your shell! Hurry!" Corazza pulled its arms and legs in and the rays hit its shell. When it untucked itself, it was fine. "Yes!"

"Très habile, very clever. Shadow Claw, Let's go!"

"Wait there, Corazza! Let it come to you!" The Kabuto firmed its stance as Haunter came closer with its claw. When the time was right, Davin shouted, "Brine, now!" and saltwater shot out from Corazza and hit Haunter in the eyes.

"HAAAAAAAUNT!" It screamed, feeling the intense burn in its eyes as it covered them with its hands.

"Oh! My poor Haunter!" Fantina gasped with her hands covering her mouth.

"Great! Now use Ancient Power!" A clear white ball of energy formed in between its front claws and it hit the Ghost-type and sent it skidding backwards.

"Pull yourself together, Haunter! Fight back!" She pleaded, but Haunter just moaned and cried with its hands still covering its eyes.

"Alright, Corazza, we got 'em right where we want 'em! Put everything you have into this next Brine and finish it!" Gathering all of its energy, Corazza released a huge blast of water and it was coming at the enemy fast.

"Haunter, dodge it! Se dépêcher!" It was too late. Haunter was hit and soaked by Brine and collapsed to the floor into unconsciousness.

"Haunter is unable to battle! Kabuto wins!"

"_Alright! Now, we only have one more to go!_" Davin thought before he frowned. "_Though if I know gym leaders, her last is more than likely her best._"

"Return, Haunter. Vous fait de votre mieux," Haunter was recalled and Fantina looked at her challenger. "I must admit, you are quite the sneaky one. To think that you would use Brine to blind my Haunter from attacking," She held a Poke ball in her hands. "It is such a shame that this will be the grande finale. Il est temps, Mismagius!" Her final Ghost-type Pokemon resembled an all purple floating witch.

"So _that's_ a Mismagius..." Davin said as he looked it up.

"Mismagius, the Magical Pokemon, and the evolved form of Misdreavus. Its cries sound similar to incantations to torment its foes. While most of its chants cause pain, there are some that rarely cause happiness."

"Well, I'm not backing down no matter how strong it is!" Davin pointed to it. "Let's win this, Corazza! Use Ancient Power!"

"Kabu!" The white energy sphere was launched.

"Dodge, Mismagius, then use Psywave!"

"Mis-magius!" It evaded the attack and released a multicolored beam from its eyes.

"Withdraw into your shell!" Corazza tucked its legs in, but the Psywave was so strong that it pushed it all the way back towards Davin's feet. "Whoa!"

"Magical Leaf!" Mismagius started to spin as glowing light green leaves were released.

"Dodge it, then use Brine!" The Magical Leaf was so fast that Corazza narrowly escaped it. It then fired the saltwater, but Mismagius avoided it.

"Now, Shadow Ball!"

"Metal Sound, let's go!" The eerie and painful noise escaped from Corazza's shell just as Mismagius was preparing Shadow Ball. The sound caused it to flinch and stay where it was. "Ancient Power!" The attack hit successfully and sent Mismagius back a few feet, but it looked like it didn't do much damage.

"Mismagius, Confuse Ray!" Its eyes glowed purple as a bright light of the same color was coming out of them.

"Into your shell, Corazza!" The command didn't come quick enough as the Kabuto gazed into the light and began to move dizzily. "Corazza!"

"Excellente! Magical Leaf, Mismagius, go!" The glowing leaves were brought out again and they bombarded Corazza in a frenzy-like fashion. "Now, Psywave!" The multicolored beam struck the Shellfish Pokemon and sent it into the air.

"Corazza, quick! Use Metal Sound!"

"Use Shadow Ball before it can do it!" The dark energy ball was fired from its necklace and sent the Kabuto straight to the ground, causing dust to pick up and shroud where it was. When it cleared, Corazza was shown to have been knocked out.

"Kabuto is unable to battle! Mismagius wins!"

"Ohohoho!" Fantina chuckled. "Now you only have one Pokemon left, and from what I have seen, it won't last long against my Mismagius!"

"She may be right," Davin said as he returned Corazza. "Mismagius has a good set of moves and it seems to have a high defense as well. But still..." He held his last Poke ball in his hand. "I refuse to give up! Loki, come on out!" The Abra appeared on the field sitting down. "It's all on you. Give it everything you've got!"

"Abra." It said.

"The end is near! Mismagius, use Confuse Ray!"

"Teleport, now!" Loki vanished before Mismagius's light hit it and it reappeared on the ghost Pokemon's right. "Shadow Ball!"

"You use Shadow Ball, too!" Both moves were launched simultaneously and created an explosion upon collision. Through the smoke, Mismagius fired another Shadow Ball and it sent Loki right into the wall. "Magical Leaf, go!"

"Teleport!" The leaves hit the wall as the vanishing act was pulled again.

Fantina smirked. "Now, Mismagius, spin fast and send Magical Leaf all around the field!"

"Miiiiiis-MAGIUS!" Mismagius spun like a drill as the glowing leaves started bouncing off the walls and created a wild hurricane. When Loki appeared in its original spot, it was immediately hit by the leaves as they struck it one after the other at a rapid pace.

"Since we couldn't hit it in one spot, we sent our attack all over the area," she said. "A simple way to overcome it, non?"

"Hang on, Loki! Try to use Shadow Ball to hit Mismagius!" The Abra was so overwhelmed that it couldn't hear Davin's orders and it continued to get hit until all of the leaves were gone. Loki fell on its side and began to pant. "This is bad."

"Oui, for you! Mismagius, use Shadow Ball and end this battle!" The dark energy ball was released and it successfully hit, creating an explosion.

"Loki, no!" When the smoke cleared, Loki was still conscious, but it was struggling to get up. "Loki, please hold on!" Davin begged. "We're so close to the victory, you need to find the strength to keep going! Please!"

"A... A-Ab... ra..." It spoke as it tried to stand.

"Hmm... its willpower is admirable, but it has little strength left." Fantina said. "Mismagius, use Shadow Ball one mo- eh? What is this?"

"Huh?" Davin looked at Loki and saw its slit eyes beginning to glow red. Suddenly, the outline of the battlefield glowed light blue as transparent walls rose up around it along with a transparent ceiling. "Whoa! What's going on?!" The boy asked as he looked around where he stood.

"Sacrebleu! It looks like Loki is using Trick Room!" Fantina said in shock.

"Trick Room?" Davin took out his Pokedex for information.

"Trick Room. This move reverses the speed of Pokemon in battle; therefore, the slowest Pokemon moves faster, and the fastest Pokemon moves slower."

Davin's eyes widened at this news as the transparent room became invisible. "This is awesome! Loki, use all of the strength you have left and use Shadow Ball!"

"Stop it, Mismagius, with _your_ Shadow Ball!" When Mismagius began to create it, the Abra disappeared and reappeared behind Mismagius in a millisecond. Then it threw the Shadow Ball and it struck Mismagius, sending it across the field. "Oh!"

"Cool! Shadow Ball, once more!" The second sphere was thrown and it hit the Ghost-type before it had a chance to get up, sending it even further across the field.

"Hurry, Mismagius! Confuse Ray!"

"Jump and use Shadow Ball!"

With the speed of a bullet, Loki seemed to teleport into the air and hurled the Shadow Ball at Mismagius as it was preparing its move.

"Mag... Mismagius..." It groaned as it tried to get up.

Davin's excitement was at its peak. "Now, Loki, give Mismagius one final Shadow Ball and put every inch of power you've got into it! Go!"

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaa-BRAAAA!" Loki chucked the ball and it exploded on Mismagius for the fourth time in this battle.

"Nooooooo! Mismagius!" Fantina cried. When the smoke from the explosion cleared, the Magical Pokemon was lying flat on the floor on its back, unconscious.

"Mismagius is unable to battle! Abra wins! The victor of this battle is the challenger, Davin!"

"YYYYYYYYES!" Davin jumped up high with his fist in the air. "WE DID IT!"

"Oh... how sad," Fantina grieved. She walked over and picked up her Pokemon. "Mismagius, are you alright, mon chéri?"

"Mismagius..." It groaned.

"You were extravagant, my dear. Take a nice long rest." Mismagius was recalled as Fantina looked at Davin, who was hugging his Abra.

"Thank you, Loki. You fought with everything you had, and I'm so proud of you!" He said while stroking its head.

"Abra..." It nodded, still feeling weak from the battle.

"Davin," the gym leader said when she came toward him. "That battle was trés magnifique! Your battling skills were wonderful, and you gave me surprises around times that I didn't expect would happen. You are truly remarkable!"

"Thank you, Fantina, that means a lot." Davin smiled.

"A trainer with your style and elegance deserves this," She handed him a badge that resembled three purple circles connected by a light blue aura. "The Relic Badge is yours!"

Davin happily took it from her. "Thank you so much."

With Loki in his left arm and his new badge in his right hand, he lifted the badge into the air and rejoiced, "All right! I just got the Relic Badge!"


	17. Chapter 17 - The Route to the Problem

After leaving the Heathome gym, Davin went to the Pokemon Center to heal the Pokemon who participated in his battle for the Relic Badge. Currently, his whole team was out (save for Zapter) and eating the food their trainer provided for them as he was on the video phone with Gilmer. Originally, he was going to call him after the gym battle to get Cobet back into his party, but...

"So you were able to win against Fantina?" Gilmer asked.

"Yep!" Davin opened his badge case and revealed his third symbol of achievement on his journey. "Shining and looking good."

"That's great news! Congratulations." The breeder praised.

"Thanks, but, um... that's not the only reason why I called you."

"What's more to tell?"

"Well, I was hoping you could put my Bibarel on the line and let us have a private conversation, if you don't mind."

"Sure. I'd be glad to." he nodded. Gilmer walked away to the back of the house and after waiting a few seconds, Cobet hopped over and looked at Davin on the screen.

"Bi Bibarel!" he greeted.

"Hey, Cobet. Feeling good?" The boy asked, to which it nodded. "Good to hear." Davin suddenly frowned and sighed. "Listen, Cobet, remember how I promised I would come get you as soon as my gym battle was over?"

"Bib." he nodded, smiling.

"Well, my gym battle's over, but... do you mind staying with Gilmer for a while longer?"

"Barel?!"

"I know I made a promise to you, but after seeing Loki battle at the gym, I really want to train him more and see what he can do in my upcoming battles. And, believe me, I would swap another one of my Pokemon out for you, but I feel that they all need to stay with me for the time being, you know?"

"Bib." Cobet lowered his head.

"Please don't be sad. I'll come send for you when I really need you; that's a promise that I really _will_ keep, okay?" But the Bibarel turned and walked away from him with a sad look on its face. "Come on, Cobet, I really mean it this time!" he called after it. "Cobet? Cobet! Cobet!" Davin sighed as Gilmer got back on the line.

"What happened? Why did Cobet walk out looking all sad?" The trainer explained the situation to his storage provider. "Oh, I see."

"But if you think about it, Gilmer, Cobet's already strong as he is. You've seen him batttle, you know what I'm talking about, right?"

"Mm-hmm."

"So, really, other than the satisfaction of traveling with me, there's really not that much of a reason for him to come with me. You get it, don't you?"

"_I_ understand, but Cobet doesn't seem to like that idea."

Davin sighed once again. "Just tell him to cheer up and that I'll call him when I can. I already have one Pokemon that's upset with me, I _really_ don't need another."

"Got it. I'll talk to you soon."

"Thanks. Bye!" Davin disconnected the call and placed the phone back on the hook. "Please, Cobet." he said to himself. "Don't make it harder than it has to be."

* * *

Sometime later, Davin left the center and was planning to go through Route 209 towards Solaceon Town. Prior to the gym battle, he had planned to do some sightseeing around Hearthome for a little while, but the phone call got him depressed, so he decided to head to the next city with a gym.

"Before I mentioned that I got my third badge, Gilmer recommended that I go to Veilstone City after I asked him where I should go to next," He looked at his Pokegear map. "And if I go past Solaceon Town, then go to Route 210 and make a right towards Route 215, I'll be able to make it there in a few days." Davin tried to sound positive, but he couldn't. He knew he had to do what he had to do, but the feeling of guilt wouldn't leave his heart no matter how much he tried to block it out.

When he entered Route 209, he found a field of grass near a lake and decided to sit there and gather himself together before moving on.

"It's just... I always try to do what's best for me and my Pokemon, and it seemed to have gone well in the past. But lately... it almost feels like I'm starting to lose my touch." He placed his hands in his pockets and held his six miniaturized Poke balls in front of his face. "I mean, just look at Zapter. He thinks I'm selfish because of my evolution plan and has started to disobey me recently. I keep telling him that I'm sorry, but it's like he doesn't think an apology is good enough. What else can I do?"

He thought about the others. "Hana's still just a baby, but she's strong and yet she hasn't won that many battles as of late. Is that because of me too? Am I not training her hard enough?" He blinked. "Tempest was able to help me win the Forest Badge in my battle against Gardenia, but afterwards he lost in the battles I chose him to fight in. Corazza's battling has been decent, but will decent be good enough to win future battles? I haven't used Viggo that much, and although he's strong, I'm beginning to rethink about him being in my party after the Route 204 incident with Zapter. And Loki... Well... he's yet to be determined." He placed the Poke balls back where he originally had them and sighed as he pulled his knees up to his face with his arms around them. "Am I kidding myself? Do I really have what it takes to win the Sinnoh League? I just don't know anymore..."

"Lili!" A high-pitched voice said.

"Huh?" Davin looked to his left and saw a strange Pokemon come out of the bushes that were near him. It was purple and cup-shaped with eight pink tentacles on its head and two yellow eye-like patterns on its body. Its upper body was connected to its lower by a yellow stem. "What is that?" he asked, taking out the Pokedex.

"Lileep, the Sea Lily Pokemon. It disguises itself as seaweed on the seafloor to swallow unwary prey that come too close to it. Lileep have been extinct for roughly 100 million years."

"Extinct?!" Davin gasped. "Then why the heck am I seeing a live one right in front of my eyes?"

"Heeeeeeeeyy!" A familiar voice shouted. A blonde boy wearing a blue shirt with a scarf around his neck jumped out of the bushes. "What's wrong with you, Lileep? I told you not to go off on your own without my permission!"

"Zale?!" Davin exclaimed as he stood up.

"Huh? Oh, hey, it's Davin! How've you been?"

"Good, but..." He pointed to the sea lily. "Does that Lileep belong to you?"

Zale chuckled and stuck his chest out. "That's right. Pretty impressive, wouldn't you say?"

"But how did you-" Davin was about to ask before something dawned on him. "Oh! You must've resurrected it from the fossil you got from Roark, right?"

Zale looked surprised. "Well, yeah, but how did you know I got a fossil from Roark?"

Davin smirked. "Because he gave me one too. Come on out, Corazza!" He tossed a Poke ball to bring out his ancient Rock/Water type.

"Whoa! What is that?!" He said as he flipped open his own Pokedex and it spoke in a male voice, which was different from Davin's.

"Kabuto, the Shellfish Pokemon. Kabuto have been regenerated from fossils that existed 300 million years ago. Although rare, living examples of this Pokemon have been discovered."

"You mean to tell me that he gave the other fossil he had to _you_?!" Getting angry, Zale hopped, one foot after the other, while shaking his fists back and forth. "That Roark! The next I see him, he's gonna regret making that choice!" Calming down a little, he looked at Davin. "You were the last person I would've guessed to be worthy of that fossil!"

"And what's _that_ supposed to mean?"

Zale put his hands behind his head. "Well, come on, Davin. You're not exactly the _best_ trainer I've seen. In fact, from what I've seen, your battle style lacks the true spark a real Pokemon trainer should have."

Davin folded his arms and turned his head to the right with a grin. "Funny. After losing the first time we battled, your tough talk has gotten so big, it can't even make any room." Zale comically fell with his legs up in the air.

Getting back up and into his rival's face, he said, "Well, I'm 10 times stronger than I was back then, so let's battle so I can beat the pants off you!"

"You got it, blondie!" Davin pushed his face against Zale's and they both growled menacingly at each other with their eyes bigger than normal.

"Kabu?" Corazza was a bit surprised at how Davin was acting.

"Lili!" Lileep just swayed its head back and forth ditsily like nothing was going on.

"You better get ready, Davin, 'cause I'm gonna be all over you like soy sauce on a California roll!"

"Best to be careful, 'cause this roll happens to be chock full of spice!"

The boys stood across from each other on the grass; before this, they had recalled their fossil Pokemon.

"This time, let's have a 3-on-3 battle!" Zale announced. "No way you'll be able to handle that!"

"Then let's stop talking and get to battling!" Davin enlarged a Poke ball and threw it. "My first Pokemon's going to be Hana!" The Leaf Pokemon materialized from the thrown sphere.

"Chikorita again, huh? Has it gotten stronger than last time?"

"I believe that's for me to know and for you to find out!"

"All right then!" Zale got out his own ball and threw it. "Aipom, let's go!"

"Ai Ai Ai!" The purple monkey chattered upon appearance. Parts of its body were colored beige, most noticeably the big three fingered hand on its tail.

Davin's Pokedex

"Aipom, the Long Tail Pokemon. Aipom live in tall trees and use their tails to wrap around branches so that they don't fall off when they sleep. It is to be noted that female Aipom have longer hair tufts than males."

Davin looked closely at Zale's Aipom and noticed that its hair tuft was shorter than the female Aipom depicted in the Pokedex, indicating that it was a boy.

Putting the Pokedex away, Davin began thinking to himself "_Maybe this is what I need... By battling with Zale, I can probably improve my Pokemon so that they can become better._"

"'Kay, Aipom, use Fury Swipes, let's go!" At Zale's command, Aipom jumped forward with the tips of its two hands glowing white.

"Hana, dodge it!" She avoided the hit, but Aipom used its tail to bounce back and scratch the Chikorita repeatedly. "That was a swift move!"

"Heh! Speaking of swift, use _your_ Swift, Aipom, now!" Jumping backwards into the air, the monkey's tail-hand glowed yellow and it swung it, sending out multiple yellow stars.

"Use Leaf Storm!" Hana spun the leaf on her head like a helicopter propeller as glowing leaves gathered from the ground towards it. Thrusting the leaf forward sent the leaves to the stars and they collided with each other, shortly after resulting in them bursting into thin air. "Petal Dance!"

"Chiko!" Pink petals struck Aipom while it was still in the air and sent it crashing down.

"Fight back, Aipom! Use Rock Smash!" The hand on Aipom's tail turned into a fist as it glowed white with the monkey coming after his opponent.

"Endure it!" Hana stood her ground when Aipom punched her with his tail and managed to shake off the attack. "Good. Now use Solar Beam!" The Chikorita's leaf stood erect as it began absorbing sunlight.

"What a dunce! Aipom, Fury Swipes!"

"Ai-pom!" Slash after slash was delivered to Hana as it tried to concentrate on its move.

"Hang in there, Hana! You can do it!" Davin encouraged her.

"Chiko... Chiko..." She winced every time she was struck.

"Alright, Aipom, let's take it out with a maximum power Rock Smash!" Zale ordered with vigor.

"Aipom!" It charged energy into its tail-fist and sent a mach blow to the Chikorita, just when it was finished charging energy. Hana was sent backwards and fell to her right side, unconscious.

"Hana!" Davin ran to her, knelt down, and picked her up. "Are you okay?"

"Chikori." She looked up at him and frowned, looking like she was about to cry.

"You fought really hard. I'm so proud of you, Hana." Kissing her forehead to soothe her, he recalled her to the Poke ball and got back to his original position. "Pretty good, Zale. I guess you _have_ improved a little."

"Told ya," He responded as he knelt down to Aipom, rewarding it with a bit of Pokemon food. "You're probably so intimidated that you're deciding to forfeit. I don't blame you. I'm just that awesome."

Davin sweatdropped. "Only _you_ would take a small compliment and skyrocket it to the moon. Anyway, let's start the next battle!"

"Right!" Zale returned Aipom and stood up, taking out another Poke ball. "Shinx, you're up next!"

"Shinx!" The lion cub cried as it came out. When it saw Davin, it immediately ran over to him and started rubbing against his leg. "Shinx Shinx."

"What do you think you're doing?! Don't snuggle up against the enemy!" Zale shouted with annoyance.

Davin laughed and bent down to pet it. "Will you relax? Shinx is just happy to see me again. Aren't you?"

"Shinx Shinx!" It smiled as it was being petted.

"Yeah, whatever. Shinx, get over here so we can start this!"

Once it ran back to its trainer's side, Davin quickly knew who he wanted to choose and took out its Poke ball when he stood back up. "I'll pit electric against electric! Viggo, I choose you!"

"Bi Bi!" The Electric Pokemon looked pumped for battle when it appeared.

"Shinx can take it down easily! Right, Shinx?"

"Shinx!" Electricity crackled around its head to show alacrity.

"Let's show 'em, Viggo! Fire Punch, let's go!" The Elekid dashed forward with its right fist out and ablaze.

"Dodge and use Bite!" Shinx jumped before it could be hit and chomped down on the sparkplug protrusion on his head, making him wince a little. "How's that?"

"Viggo, Shock Wave!" Spinning his arms rapidly, the Flash Pokemon was blasted by electricity and fell to the ground. "Follow with another Fire Punch!"

"Get up, Shinx, and use Charge Beam!" As Viggo stepped back and charged forward, Shinx stood to its feet and released a beam of electricity from its mouth. Viggo continued to charge forward, even when it hit, and made contact with the cub by punching it with its burning fist. "What?! How could it not have worked?"

"Heh! My Elekid had been living near the Valley Windworks before I caught it and it battled periodically with a Pachirisu, so naturally it can withstand Electric attacks better than your Shinx can."

Zale grunted. "Shinx, use Tackle!" It took off towards Viggo.

"Block it and push it back!" Putting his hands out in front of it, Shinx tackled Viggo's hands, but was immediately shoved away and it forcibly rolled over to its trainer's side of the area.

"You can do better than that! Use Tackle again and put more strength into it!" Shinx got up again and ran, but following Davin's orders to repeat his previous tactic, Viggo blocked it and pushed it back again.

"Harder!" Shinx made a third attempt and was sent backwards.

"Harder!" It failed again, toppling backwards.

"Harder, Shinx! Harder!" Giving it all it had, Shinx charged with its eyes closed, and instead of blocking this time, the Elekid let loose a Fire Punch and sent it near Zale's feet. "Aggggh!"

"Now, Viggo, use Rolling Kick and finish it!" He ran and jumped forward with his right leg out. Doing a complete turn, Viggo kicked the side of Shinx's face and knocked it over to the right, not to mention into unconsciousness.

"No way...!" Zale was practically speechless.

Davin chuckled satisfactorily. "Another victory marked on your chart, Viggo! Nice work."

"Bi, Bi Bi!" He gave him a thumbs up with a wink.

"Return, Shinx!" Zale recalled it, feeling a little ticked about the lost. "Don't think this is over yet! My last Pokemon will, without a doubt, bring you down to your knees."

"Oh, yeah?" His rival questioned as he called back his Elekid. "Come on with it then!"

"You asked for it! Grotle, let's get going!" The Poke ball thrown opened and in a flash of white light, a big yellow and green tortoise with bushes on its back was exposed.

"Judging by the way it looks, his Turtwig must've evolved from it." Davin checked the Pokedex to be sure.

"Grotle, the Grove Pokemon, and the evolved form of Turtwig. It has the natural ability to sense where pure water is welled up, and is said to have its own secret springwater when it lives in a forest."

Zale rubbed his finger under his nose as he grinned. "Shinx may not have been good competition for ya, but Grotle's way more stronger than when it was a Turtwig!"

"Grotllle!" The Pokemon agreed, seeming to have remembered the boy.

"So what? That just makes this battle more fun!" Davin lobbed his next Poke ball "Last but not least, here comes Tempest!"

"Staravia!" The Starling Pokemon shouted when it emerged in the air.

"Let's teach 'em a lesson in power, Grotle! Razor Leaf, now!" It shook its body left to right to release razor-sharp leaves from its bushes into the air.

"Dodge it!" Tempest flew over the leaves and dived down towards Grotle. "Wing Attack!"

"Leech Seed, go!" A brown seed was shot from Grotle's bushes and landed on Tempest's head as its wings glowed white. The seed sprouted roots and they entangled the Staravia, glowing as they released a red energy that hurt Tempest and sent it falling.

"Oh no!" Davin shouted.

"Heh ha! Alright, Grotle, use Curse!" Firming its stance a little, a red aura surrounded its body.

"What good will that do? Grotle isn't a Ghost type, so it's speed will decrease."

"True, but it also raises its attack and defense power, which benefits Grotle because it's not even that fast in the first place." Zale countered. "Hit Staravia with Tackle!"

"Grot!" Sluggishly, Grotle went forward to the ensnared starling, who was doing its best to get up off the ground.

"You can fight it, Tempest! Just endure it and fly up!" Davin encouraged.

"Starrrr..." The roots were stealing its energy as it started getting up. Listening to his trainer, Tempest managed to take it and flew into the air. "Staravia!"

"Excellent! Now, dive and use Wing Attack!" Its wings glowed again as it tried again to damage the Grass type.

"I don't think so! Grotle, Razor Leaf!" Zale commanded, eliciting Davin to smirk. When the leaves shot out, Tempest was struck, but at the same time the roots were sliced off of his body. "Gah! I really _wasn't_ thinking at all!"

"Now that Leech Seed's out of the way, use Aerial Ace, Tempest!" Flying down, the Staravia flapped his wings once and suddenly became a blur as he hit Grotle in the face and made it recoil in pain.

"Shake it off and use Leech Seed!"

"Use Quick Attack to dodge, then use Aerial Ace again!" Tempest flew up quickly to avoid the seed and immediately shot forward with its next move. Zale quickly had Grotle use Curse to increase its defense and the Grove Pokemon was able to abide the blow. "Aw man!"

"Your luck's running out, Davin, so prepare to take defeat like a man! Use Razor Leaf at full power!"

"Tempest, use Whirlwind!" The breeze it created from flapping its wings forced the attack to cease and drop to the ground. "No way we'll be taken down that easily! Wing Attack, let's go!"

"That goes double for us! Curse, Grotle!" Attack and defense rose just as Tempest hit it with his wings. "Do it!"

"Grot-le!" Instinctively, the tortoise used Leech Seed before Tempest could back away and the roots drained his energy, causing him to fall on the ground.

"And just so you know, I never make the same mistake twice!" Zale informed Davin. "Tackle it!" This time, it was easy to get a hit since the starling was so close.

"Hang in there! Use Quick Attack!"

"Razor Leaf!" Tempest was bombarded by the leaves as the roots had drained half of its energy and made it too weak to go at the usual full speed. When it tried to recover, the roots released the red energy and Tempest cried out in shockingly intense pain.

"Tempest!" Davin screamed with worry. Tempest looked like he would go down any minute now.

"Grotle! They can't keep this up, so let's finish them with Razor Le-" Zale started to say before he was cut off by a Misdreavus fading into presence in front of his face and using Astonish, making him scream like a little girl. "WHAT THE HECK?!"

"Huh?/Grot?" Davin and Grotle asked in unison at his outburst. The Misdreavus cackled and floated away with Zale in an awkward and scared stance.

Regaining his composure, he put a hand to his heart and sighed with closed eyes. "Man, what was that about?" Abruptly, he opened them back up and gasped. "Oh, that's right, I forgot! Grotle, return!" He held up the Poke ball and got it back inside.

"Hey! What are you doing?" Davin said as the roots around Tempest faded away after Grotle was recalled.

"Sorry, Dave, but I just remembered I've got something important to do with my Pokemon and I need to go to the Pokemon Center, pronto!" Zale quickly dashed off back towards Hearthome City as a dust cloud followed his tracks.

"Wait a second! Return, Tempest." Davin got the tired bird back in his Poke ball and took off after the hyperactive blonde. "_What's got him so riled up that he would cancel our battle like that?_"


	18. Chapter 18 - Lost Tower Terror

Later at the Hearthome Pokemon Center, Zale was standing by the video phones, tapping his foot impatiently as he looked at the watch function on his orange Poketch.

"Come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, hurry up, hurry up, Nurse Joy! If you don't get my Pokemon healed in the next 10 seconds, there'll be heck to pay!"

Right then, the automatic doors opened and Davin walked in, trying to catch his breath.

"Man, that guy can run." He panted. Looking up and seeing the boy, he ran over to him. "Zale!"

"Hmm?" He looked up from his Poketch. "Davin? What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to know what was up with you. When you saw that Misdreavus, you just canceled our battle and ran away. What's going on?"

Zale huffed in annoyance and folded his arms while turning away. "Since when was it any of _your_ business?"

"What? I'm just curious. I've never seen you react like that before."

Zale fully faced him again and said, "If I told you what I was doing, I know you would get ideas about doing the same thing! So you can just forget about me telling you about how I'm going to the Lost Tower to catch me a Pokemon!"

"The Lost Tower?" Davin echoed, making Zale cover his mouth with both hands.

Few seconds later, Zale decided to tell him what he was going to do since it already slipped out.

"You see, I challenged Fantina to a gym battle the other day, but I ended up getting my butt kicked. I trained my Pokemon for hours the next day, and she still was able to take me down." Davin nodded as he spoke. "So I went to Solaceon Town to head over to the next gym, and that's when I overheard a conversation at the Pokemon Center about a place called the Lost Tower. They said that the place is crawling with Ghost type Pokemon, and since ghosts are weak to their own type, I'd figure I go there and catch one myself. But since it was so early in the day, I wanted to wait until night to do it because I thought my chances of catching a strong one would be greater then. I planned on passing the time by doing some training with my Pokemon, and that's when Lileep wandered off and lead me to you when I was chasing it."

"So that explains it..." Davin mumbled.

"'Course, time would've gone faster if a certain _someone_ hadn't gotten in my way!" Zale accused while looking at him.

"Excuse me?! Aren't _you_ the one who challenged _me_?"

"Well, I wouldn't have if you weren't such a pain in the neck!"

"You're one to talk! You're the biggest pain this world's ever seen!"

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah!"

"Oh, yeah?!"

"Yeah!"

"OH, YEAH!"

"YES!"

The various people in the Pokemon Center were staring at them awkwardly as they got in each others faces with each yell. Before things could get worse, the center's healing jingle could be heard and Nurse Joy called Zale to the front desk.

"The Pokemon you left with me are all fully healed." she said with the usual Joy smile as she placed a tray with three Poke balls on the counter.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy." Zale collected them, placed them back in his satchel, and turned to Davin "Nice seeing you again, but I've got to go. See ya!" He ran out the doors and left the black haired boy staring after him.

"The Lost Tower..." He mused before taking out three Poke balls and facing the front desk. "Nurse Joy, do you mind healing my Pokemon, too?"

"Of course. That's what I'm here for." She gradually took the Poke balls and went to the back. Davin went over to one of the couches and took a seat.

"When night comes around, Zale won't be the only one at that tower."

* * *

Hours had past and it was now around 10:00 at night. Davin had been doing the sightseeing he had planned to pass the time, such as watching the Hearthome Super Contest, going to Amity Square, and a few other things. He went out to Route 209 where the tower was and saw someone going inside, though he couldn't tell who for sure because it was so dark. Thinking it was most likely Zale, he ran over and quietly walked inside.

Meanwhile, the blonde was on the 1st floor and was using a flashlight to see better in the dark tower. Though he had been there for about 3 minutes, he couldn't find a single Ghost Pokemon.

"Come on! They've gotta be around here somewhere." Zale complained, moving the flashlight around the room. "If that conversation I heard was untrue, those guys I heard it from are getting a major punishment!"

Just when he was walking, a hand suddenly clasped his shoulder.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHH!" Without thinking, he slugged the person behind him in the face and sent him to the ground. "ALL RIGHT! WHO THE HECK ARE YOU, SNEAKING BEHIND ME LIKE THAT?!" When he shined the light on his creeper, he saw a familiar black haired boy groaning and holding his face. "Wha- Davin?! What are you doing here? You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

Standing himself up, he said, "I was just trying to let you know I was behind you without scaring you."

"Well, you could've fooled me! Why are you even here, anyway?" He questioned.

"After you told me about the Lost Tower, I thought I'd join you and see what kind of cool Pokemon live here." Davin explained.

"A-ha! I knew it! I knew you'd get the same idea as me! Why do I always have to open my big mouth and tell everything I'm thinking, why can't-" As Zale continued his rambling, Davin examined their surroundings. A lot of gravestones were seen along with two white picket fences that surrounded half of them and he noticed a staircase behind him that led up to the next floor.

When Zale calmed down, Davin asked, "Hey, do you know why there are so many gravestones in this place?"

"You didn't know? The Lost Tower is the burial ground for deceased Pokemon in the Sinnoh region."

"Really?" He looked around worriedly. "Are you sure it's okay to even be in here?"

"Of course. I've seen people come in here to pay their respects to Pokemon during the day. Not so sure about during the night, though."

"I'm not sure about this, Zale."

"Oh? Chickening out, are we?" He said with a smirk.

"Yeah, right! I'm not scared of anything. I'm just saying, what if something bad happens?"

"What bad could possibly come from being inside a tower with gravestones in the middle of the night where Ghost Pokemon live and will probably kill us for invading their resting home?" Davin was speechless. "That's what I thought. Now, come on." He walked past him and went to the stairs, leaving him to look back at the entrance and think.

"Let's just hope you're right." Turning around, he followed suit up the stairway.

Getting to the 2nd floor, they found more gravestones and tombstones as they searched around.

"Hey! Ghost Pokemon! Come out already, will ya?!" Zale shouted with his hand placed on the side of his mouth.

"You really think they're going to come out with you yelling with that loud voice of yours?"

"Oh, shut it! I've been here for a while and I haven't seen one ghost. I'm fed up with waiting!"

"When has _that_ ever changed?" Davin grinned.

"Look, you! I-" Zale was about to retort when suddenly his entire body was outlined in a red aura and it was absorbed away by an unknown source. "Huh. That's weird. All of a sudden, I don't feel mad anymore."

"What?" Right then, they could hear someone giggling. They both turned forward and a small ghost that looked like it was covered in a black cloth and had a pointed horn and eyes that were light blue, dark blue, and yellow levitated before them with a smile.

"Finally! A Ghost Pokemon!" Zale said excitedly as Davin took out the Pokedex.

"Shuppet, the Puppet Pokemon. Shuppet is the pre-evolved form of Banette. It uses its horn to feed on the emotions of people, and it roams mostly at night."

"So it was Shuppet who took away your anger." Davin noted. "That's actually pretty cool."

"You bet it is! Which is why it's going to be _my_ Pokemon!" Zale threw the first Poke ball he came in contact with. "Shinx, let's go!"

"Shin Shinx!" It cried when it appeared.

"Shuppet!" Unknown to them, Shuppet's shadow moved on its own towards Shinx. When it reached the cub, a blast of dark energy rose up from it and hit Shinx, inflicting damage.

"Whoa! What just happened?" Zale shouted.

"Shuppet just used Shadow Sneak." Davin clarified.

"Well then, go, Shinx! Use Bite!" Getting back on its feet, Shinx jumped with its mouth open, but Shuppet faded away and it hit its head on one of the tombstones. "Shinx!"

"Shi-i-inx..." It groaned as it stood up and shook its head. Behind it, Shuppet reappeared and was preparing to use Shadow Ball.

"Behind you, Shinx! Dodge it!" Reacting quickly, the Electric-type jumped and narrowly evaded the attack. "Nice! Now, use Charge Beam!" It turned around in mid-air and fired the blast of electricity that successfully hit the Ghost Pokemon.

"Shup!" It winced after the attack. "Shuppet Shup!" It fired black beams from both of its eyes in retaliation.

"Use Charge Beam again!" The electric blast hit Shuppet's attack as both pushed to overpower each other. "Come on, Shinx! More power!"

"Shi-nx!" Charge Beam pushed Night Shade back a little.

"Shup-pet!" Night Shade fought back and pushed Charge Beam.

"Don't let up! Keep going until you win it!" Zale encouraged. Both Pokemon tried increasing the power of their moves, one after the other, to gain dominance, but it led to failure as eventually the attack exploded and sent them both into the walls. "Shinx, no!"

When Shinx's trainer ran over to it, Shuppet managed to get back up and fled by fading away.

"Are you okay?" Zale asked him, to which he nodded. "That's good. Why don't you take a rest for now?" He put him back in his ball and turned around towards the Puppet Pokemon, but saw that it had left. "What?! It's gone? I don't believe this! We were so close!" He began jumping around wildly with his fists shaking as Davin just stared at him.

"Close? It looked like they were even to me." He said to himself.

Deciding to move on, they went to the 3rd floor and found more grave and tombstones than the previous floor.

"They just keep increasing the higher we go up." Davin noted.

"So what? All I care about is catching a Ghost Pokemon and getting out of here." Zale said. Turning his flashlight towards a gravestone on the left, he gasped. "Yes! Another one!"

Davin looked in his direction and saw a black ball surrounded in purple smoke. "That's a Pokemon?" When he opened the Pokedex, he figured that the one in front of them had its back turned because the device showed that it had big white eyes and a mouth with two fangs.

"Gastly, the Gas Pokemon. With its body made of poisonous gas, it can take down the largest of foes by simply enveloping them in its gas."

Wasting no time, Zale threw a Poke ball and his Aipom appeared. "No way I'm losing this one! Aipom, use Fury Swipes!" The monkey jumped and attempted to scratch, but it passed right through the ghost's body. "Huh?"

"Normal type moves don't work on Ghost types! Didn't you learn that from your battle with Fantina?"

"Y-Yeah, I knew that." He made up. The Gastly had noticed Aipom attack it and levitated into the air to release a blast of electricity, which Zale recognized as Thunderbolt. "Dodge it! Quick!"

"Ai-pom!" He used his tail to bounce off of the gravestone as Thunderbolt missed and he was now up the air with Gastly.

"Use Rock Smash!" The hand on Aipom's tail turned into a fist that glowed white and he swung it to have it simply pass through Gastly, resulting in him falling to the floor.

"Fighting type moves won't work either." Davin bluntly commented.

"Will you just be quiet and let me handle it?!" He responded angrily. "Aipom, use Thief!"

"Pom!" He jumped back into the air with his hand-tail glowing black with a purple outline. Making a swiping motion with it on Gastly's body, it caused super effective damage to the Ghost Pokemon.

"There! See?" Zale said to Davin. "Thief is a Dark-type move, and it not only works on Ghost Pokemon, but also does double the damage to them as well. I know stuff too, you know?"

"Gast-ly!" Gastly's eyes glowed red and an orb of the same color formed in front of it. Red beams then fired from the orb and hit Aipom, making him fall on his back and go to sleep. Next, a shadow-like version of itself appeared from its body and swiftly passed through the Normal-type's body, making his eyes shoot open. He rolled to his right side and fainted.

"Not you too, Aipom!" Zale groaned as Gastly disappeared. He recalled the Long Tail Pokemon and sighed. "I never knew Ghost Pokemon were this hard to catch."

"Maybe they're not. Maybe you just need more training." Davin said jokingly.

"Pssh! Whatever." Zale ignored him.

* * *

"GAAAAAAAHHH! WHAT COULD IT POSSIBLY TAKE?!" Zale screamed.

They had went to the 4th floor and encountered a Misdreavus, where he proceeded to use Lileep to catch it. Using attacks like Confuse Ray, Psybeam, and Spite resulted in the Rock/Grass Pokemon fainting and Misdreavus escaping. Now, they were on the 5th and final floor of the tower.

"Just face it, Zale. Ghost Pokemon are too tricky for you. You might as well give up." Davin said as he walked up the stairs to join him.

"No! No! No! I came in here to catch a Ghost-type, and I'm not leaving 'til I _have_ a Ghost-type, you hear me?!" he said, throwing a tantrum.

Davin sighed "Where you get that energy and persistence is beyond me." He then noticed something about this floor. "Odd. There aren't any graves here."

"Huh?" Zale asked, just noticing. "Yeah, you're right. But what's that?" He pointed to the center of the room. A small brown stone object that had two arch-like cracks in it with two dots apart from it was just sitting there.

"Beats me." Davin said, walking over to it. He intended to pick it up, but as soon as his fingers touched it, the cracks and dots started glowing purple. "That's weird." Holding it in the palm of his hand, the stone emitted a bright purple force that sent him into the wall behind Zale.

"Davin!" The blonde shouted as the boy groaned. Looking back at the stone, Zale saw that it floated into the air and something was coming out of it. It was purple and green, and it rotated like a vortex. It had a green mouth in a crooked expression with eyes of the same color, one of which had a spiral in it. "What on earth is that?!" He shouted as he took out his Pokedex.

"Spiritomb, the Forbidden Pokemon. It was locked away in an Odd Keystone for crimes of mischief around 500 years ago. It is formed by the unity of 108 spirits."

"Man, oh man! You see what you did, Davin? You unlocked a demon from 500 years ago!"

"No, I didn't." Davin said as he got up. "If that Spiritomb was bound for 500 years, it wouldn't be just sitting there at the top of a tower where people visit daily, so it must be a resident here like the other Ghost Pokemon."

"Spiri-tomb." The ghost said in a deep, haunting voice. A huge, purple wind escaped from its body and made the boys cringe from it.

"That Spiritomb's Ominous Wind is strong!" Davin commented as the said wind stopped. "Maybe we should go, Zale."

"Are you nuts? This guy is just the ghost I've been looking for!" He exclaimed as he took out a Poke ball. "I only have one Pokemon left, and I'm not going to let this one get away! Grotle, come on out!"

"Grot-le!" The Grove Pokemon immediately looked ready to fight.

"Toooomb!" A beam composing of dark purple circles was fired from Spiritomb's mouth.

"Endure it, Grotle!" The Dark Pulse was able to push it back a good bit of distance, but it managed to hang tough. "Razor Leaf, go!" The razor-sharp leaves were launched, but the Ghost/Dark type looked as if it were nothing when it hit. "No way!"

"Grotle!" Grotle shouted in pain as it was hit by Spiritomb's Silver Wind attack.

"This isn't looking too good for you." Davin said.

"We can handle it! Use Leech Seed!" The seed shot out and landed on Spiritomb, entangling it in vines and draining its energy in the red flash. "Now, Razor Leaf!" This time, Spiritomb flinched from the leaves as they struck at the same time Leech Seed drained its energy.

"That should do it. Go, Poke ball!" Zale threw one of his empty ones and it sucked Spiritomb inside. The ball shook five times before opening again and releasing the Forbidden Pokemon in a white light. What was worse was that since it had left the field, the Leech Seed had disappeared. "Oh no!"

"Spiiiiritooomb!" Silver Wind's wind with white crescents was released and it hit Grotle once again.

"Stay strong, Grotle! Use-" Spiritomb used Ominous Wind before Zale could finish and blew Grotle into the wall. As it slid down, it fell into unconsciousness. "Grotle..."

"Toooomb!" Spiritomb used Silver Wind and it almost hit the two trainers. Zale was too distracted by his lost, so Davin pushed him out of the way to save him.

"That was close." The boys stood up and looked at Spiritomb. "Why did it attack us? It won the battle, didn't it?"

"I think since we disturbed Spiritomb, it wants to get rid of us!" Zale spoke.

"I won't let that happen!" Hastily, Davin took out a Poke ball and threw it. "Zapter, I choose you!" The Magnet Area Pokemon materialized and levitated in the air. "Quick, use Thunderbolt and stop Spiritomb!"

"Zone." Zapter closed its eyes and turned away.

"This isn't the time for that, Zapter! I really need you here!" Its trainer chided.

"Magne?" While it was having an attitude, it saw-almost at the last minute-Spiritomb use Dark Pulse towards it, and it quickly dodged it. Realizing that it had to fight, Zapter used Electro Ball and fired the sphere from its antenna.

"Spiri." The ball suddenly stopped in mid-air as it and Spiritomb's body glowed light blue. Then, it was redirected towards its owner and exploded when it hit.

"It just used Psychic." noted Zale as the Magnezone was shown to have not taken that much damage.

"Magne-zone!" It decided to use Gyro Ball and started spinning to successfully hit the Ghost Pokemon directly. Quickly, it followed by using Thunderbolt and electrocuted it before it could respond.

"Wow, Davin, your Magnemite's gotten stronger the last time I saw it. I mean, look at it go."

"I guess." Davin said as Zapter kept hammering Spiritomb with its attacks.

"Maaaag-" Zapter was about to wrap it up, but a bell tower nearby was heard ringing, signifying that it was morning. Through the window of the room, the sun was starting to rise and it shone light on to the floor.

"Spiri?" The Forbidden Pokemon said as it turned towards the sun. "SPIRITOOOOOOMMBB!" It suddenly descended back into its keystone and vanished from sight.

"Hmm... Guess Spiritomb doesn't like the daylight." Davin said.

"Yeah..." Zale nodded.

A few minutes later, Davin and Zale had returned Zapter and Grotle and left the Lost Tower before anything else could happen.

"What a night, huh?" Davin asked.

"Yeah, talk about crazy." Zale added.

"So, what are you going to do now? I mean, you weren't able to catch a Ghost Pokemon. How do you plan on beating Fantina?"

"I guess I'll just move on and go to the next gym. The next time I challenge her, I'll be ten times as strong then I am now! Besides that, I learned from our trip that it's not always about what type of Pokemon you use against your opponent. It's also about getting stronger and learning the right moves."

"That sounds about right. Good for you, Zale."

"Thanks." He nodded. "Well, I'm going to Solaceon Town. Next time we meet, I'll definitely beat you in a battle!"

"Don't hold your breath. I'll be getting stronger too, you know!"

"No matter how strong you get, I'll always be a much better trainer than you! See ya!" With those as his last words, he dashed over to the east towards Solaceon.

"He's _so_ full of it." Davin shook his head. He headed towards Solaceon Town as well, but took his time walking, unlike his rival.


	19. Chapter 19 - Electromagnetic Wakeup Call

When Davin had reached Solaceon Town and went into the Pokemon Center, he was surprised to find out that Zale had already healed his Pokemon and left in a hurry, as told by Nurse Joy. After getting all of his Pokemon back from her when they were healed, Davin immediately left (at his own pace, unlike his rival) to go into Route 210; he had heard someone talk about the Solaceon Ruins at the east side of town and how Unown were found there, but he denied the chance to explore it because he was ready to get to Veilstone City as soon as possible.

At the aforementioned route, the trainer made a spot for himself to have breakfast near a honey tree that was separate from the area's tall grass.

"All right, everyone, come on out!" All of his Poke balls were thrown at once, releasing his consisted team of Chikorita, Kabuto, Magnezone, Staravia, Elekid, and Abra. "Hope you guys are hungry, 'cause it's breakfast time!" All of them, except for Magnezone and Abra (who wasn't much of an enthusiast) cheered when those words were said.

"Bi Bi?" Suddenly, Viggo just noticed the big metal magnet Pokemon across from him and instantly recognized it as Zapter, surprised and taken aback that it had evolved twice and he didn't even know up until this point due to Davin keeping them apart so that they wouldn't cause trouble with their fighting. "Bi...!"

Davin placed a bowl of Pokemon food in front of each of them, saying, "Here you go, everyone. Dig in!"

"Bi Bi Bi!" The Elekid abruptly protested, going to him and jumping up and down wildly as he shook his fists.

"Viggo, calm down! What's the matter?"

"Bi-Bi!" He pointed to the disgruntled Magnezone, making a motion with his hands that represented something increasing in size.

"Oh..." Davin sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "I'm guessing you're mad that Zapter evolved and I didn't tell you, huh?"

"Bi Bi?! (You think?!)"

"It's _really _a long story, but I'll fill you in after we eat, okay?"

"Bi!" Viggo scoffed and looked away with crossed arms. Sighing, the trainer knelt down to him and whispered,

"If it makes you feel any better, ever since it evolved, Zapter won't listen to me anymore." The Pokemon gasped in shock. "See, I kind of gave it the impression that the only reason I brought it with me to Sinnoh was just to make it evolve, and while that's technically true, I didn't do it out of selfishness, but out of care that it would get stronger. But even when I explained this to him, he still wouldn't forgive me."

"Bi..." Such a tale left the Electric-type surprised and a little bewildered.

Davin stood up straight and told everyone to go ahead and start eating. Save for the Magnezone, everyone was just staring with interest, wondering what they were talking about. "Everything's fine, don't worry." He reassured.

While he sat at the table and everyone was eating, Viggo couldn't help but ask Zapter about his current hatred for their trainer.

"(So, Zap, uh... what's your beef with Davin?)"

"(Why do you care?)" It asked, not looking at him.

"(I don't. I'm just curious.)"

It scoffed. "(Well, it's not like I'm going to tell you, of all Pokemon.)"

"(Why's that?)" he asked, getting a bit angry.

"(We're enemies. Did you forget, or are you just too dumb to remember?)"

"(Watch it!)" He scowled. "(And we're rivals, not enemies. There's a difference, you know?)"

"(I'm still not going to tell you.)"

"(Fine! Be that way!)" Viggo looked away from him and resumed eating.

About 12 seconds of pondering passed before Zapter spoke, "(I thought we were friends...)"

Viggo then looked at the magnet in confusion. "(What? No, no. See, Zap, a rival isn't exactly a friend, but more of a, um-)"

"(Not you!)" It shouted. "(I'm talking about Davin.)"

"(Oh. Well... he is your friend, isn't he? You were with him when we met each other.)"

"(I believed that... until I found out he used me... like a tool!)"

"(Tool? What're you talking about?)"

"(The only reason I'm here in the first place is because he wanted me to evolve into a Magneton, and then into a Magnezone.)"

"(And?)"

"(He lied to me! He had me fooled that I was going on some quest with him as a friend, but all he cared about was getting me to evolve! That's just sick, selfish, and deceitful!)"

"(Well, Davin _is _a trainer. Half of his priority is making his Pokemon the strongest he can raise them, and evolving is one of the ways he can do it.)"

"(I know that, but-)"

"(Trainers can't be friends with their Pokemon _all _the time. They have to be strict sometimes and do what they think is best for how to make their Pokemon increase their power.)"

"(But-)"

"(And Davin only made you evolve because he thought it would make you stronger. That doesn't just benefit him, it benefits you, too! Think of how many wins you could get against Pokemon that other ones couldn't beat. Wouldn't that feel good? Wouldn't that make you feel like you've truly earned the right to be that strong?)"

"(Well... I guess so, but-)"

"(And one more thing!)" The Elekid crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. "(If Davin really brought you to Sinnoh just for you to evolve, then why are you still here?)"

"(Huh?)"

"(Well, he already achieved at getting you to evolve, so wouldn't he have sent you back to wherever you came if he didn't have any more use for you?)"

"(Well... I don't know, I...)"

"(He could have easily dumped you back home after he evolved his 'tool' but he didn't. How does that not prove that he still cares about you?)"

"(...)"

"(Didn't cross your brain until just now, did it?)" Zapter shook his head in reply. "(Davin told you this himself, didn't he? About how he just wanted you to get stronger so that you could become not just a Pokemon, but a Pokemon owned by the Greatest Pokemon Master?)"

It was silent for a moment. "(...I guess... I did kind of overreact without thinking...)" It said. "(Davin's never treated me bad, so... why would he start now?)"

"(Exactly!)"

Zapter closed his eyes. "(I'm disappointed in myself.)"

"(You wouldn't be... if you went over and apologized.)" Viggo offered.

Zapter looked at the trainer eating a rice ball and just nodded, levitating over to the human.

Davin was thinking about some things until he noticed the Magnet Area Pokemon floating by him. He half-expected it to do something like use Thunderbolt on him as a mean trick, but saw that it had a sad look on its face. "What's wrong, Zapter? Is it the food? Because I know you can't eat solid Pokemon food but, you know, with your generator having gotten blown up at Route 204, I can't-"

What Davin half-expected turned into something _un_expected: Zapter got close to him and pressed its face against his cheek (since it couldn't hug him with magnets for arms) and softly but remorsefully uttered, "Mag-ne-zone..."

"Zapter? Are you... feeling okay?" He backed away until they were face to face and it started speaking in Poké-language, which Davin somehow understood.

"(Davin... I'm so sorry. I was stupid and blind to see that you really were doing what you thought was best for me, not treating me like a tool. The truth is... back in Varex when I was still a Magnemite at the power plant, I... never really had any friends. I was so wild, always blasting electricity all over the place, and that made everyone think I was destructive, troublesome, and a nuisance. Aside from Natalie, you were the first real friend I had, so I couldn't help but overreact at the thought of you bringing me to Sinnoh just to get me to evolve.)" It sighed. "(I realize now that you do still care about me, and really, Davin... I am sorry... Honestly...)"

The boy just smiled happily and hugged the Electric/Steel Pokemon. "I'm sorry, too. I didn't consider how you would feel about this and just assumed you would be cool with it, but... that wasn't right at all." He hugged it tighter. "I won't make the same mistake again, I promise...!"

"Mag-nezone!" It cheerfully responded.

Davin asked when he let go, "So does this mean you'll start listening to me again in battle?" It nodded. "Good, because whatever type of Pokemon the Veilstone gym leader uses, I'm going to use you in that battle, 'kay?"

"Mag, Magnezone!" It nodded assertively.

"Bi!" Viggo hopped on to the table and asked the Magnezone, "(Everything's cool now?)"

"(Yeah... it is.)" It said with a smile in its eyes.

"Viggo, did... did you talk to Zapter about what I told you?"

"Bi-Bi!" He looked away with his eyes closed, blushing a little and giving a thumbs up.

"Thanks, buddy." Davin picked up the Electric Pokemon and hugged him with his left arm while hugging Zapter in his right.

Happy that the conflict between Zapter and him was over and forgotten, Davin and his Pokemon team continue finishing their breakfast, feeling like peace had finally been restored.


End file.
